Raul Rosas vs Christian Rodriguez at UFC 287 (Credits: ESPN)
Sean O’Malley offers advise to Raul Rosas Jr. following loss at UFC 287
At UFC 287, Christian Rodriguez defeated Raul Rosas Jr. for the first time in his professional career after overcoming an early deficit. While several fighters saw it as an opportunity to mock the young contender, Sean O’Malley has offered his advice to him.
At UFC 287, Christian Rodriguez defeated Raul Rosas Jr. for the first time in his professional career after overcoming an early deficit.
Although Rosas Jr.’s grappling dominated the first round, Rodriguez flipped the script in the second and ended the round strongly, putting pressure on the 18-year-old who was tiring. The Roufusport native averted a takedown early in the third round, then defeated Rosas Jr. to earn the victory.
Rodriguez, 25, is a promising UFC newcomer, having improved to 2-0 in the bantamweight division and 9-1 overall. As long as Friday’s missed weight cut was an aberration, Rodriguez should remain a vital player in the stacked 135-pound division.
After UFC 287, Sean O’Malley believes Raul Rosas Jr. should take some time off and focus on his craft.
Chris Rodriguez defeated 18-year-old Rosas by unanimous decision during the main card opener in Miami on Saturday. Rosas rushed out of the gate for a takedown and was able to take Rodriguez’s back swiftly. When Rodriguez fought off the choke, however, Rosas slowed down and was defeated for the remainder of the match.
Rosas (7-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) entered the fight with a great deal of anticipation, but O’Malley believes the occasion was too much for him.
Reacting to the fight on the Timbo Sugar Show podcast, O’Malley stated:
“I called that. I said I think Christian Rodriguez is going to be too much. (He) trains at a good f*cking gym. Doesn’t mean Raul Rosas Jr. is done, but I mean, where do you go from here? Maybe you don’t even sign him at that age – you let him fight for two, three years, rack up some more wins. … But UFC, that’s the risk they’re willing to take. ‘Hey, we’re going to have a potential star.’ He still can be. I don’t know.”
“I said he’s going to come out frantic, try to do what he does probably to most people at the gym: take him down, take their back, choke them. But if not, he’s going to gas. He can’t keep that pace.”
He added:
“There’s definitely guys in the division that he can go out there and beat,” O’Malley said. “I don’t even think he needs to go out there and get a win. He needs to go out there and and get better. Take two years off. Lift. F*cking grind. … I think he should stay at 135. Just don’t fight for a couple of years. Get good. Just improve everywhere (and) come back.”
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