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Yair Rodriguez and Brian Ortega are both Hispanic fighters with Mexican roots, but their fight on July 16 is taking place in New York for some reason. Rodriguez explained why he had no problem with the UFC's decision to hold their fight far from home.
In a new interview on The MMA Hour, Rodriguez said:
"There's a saying in Mexico, I don't know how to say it in english ... It doesn't matter, if you're a good fighter you'll fight anywhere. The place for me is the last thing I care about. So anywhere for me is a good place to die. We're ready. If you have to do that, of course you're going for glory, if you're going to die, any place is good. Let's go."
Rodriguez and Ortega grew to become friends as they ran into each other around Southern California over the years. Being top featherweights, they knew a fight was an eventual possibility. Rodriguez said:
“We didn’t want to fight each other unless we had to. Now, this is an opportunity for both of us, and we have to fight each other. As I said before, this is not the opponent I wanted but the opportunity I wanted and here we are facing each other for this big opportunity. So, it’s an important fight like you said.”
Watch Yair Rodriguez's full interview on The MMA Hour below:
Yair Rodriguez says the UFC has promised him a title shot if he beats Brian Ortega
There's a lot at stake for Yair Rodriguez on Saturday at UFC on ABC 3. According to 'El Pantera,' he'll receive a featherweight title shot if he gets past tough submission specialist Brian Ortega in Long Island, New York.
On the latest episode of The MMA Hour, Rodriguez said:
“Yes, that has been said to me. Yeah, that’s what we’re looking for. First things first, I’m going to win this fight and then give the champ some time to heal and yeah, go for it. For now, let’s take it step by step, first things first, July 16, Brian Ortega, that’s for now.”
Yair Rodriguez is coming off a tough loss to Max Holloway from November 2021 that saw him go toe-to-toe with 'Blessed' for five hard rounds. While Rodriguez lost the bout, he won over a lot of fans by staying in the fight right up until the final bell.
Now he's hoping to solidify a featherweight title shot by beating Brian Ortega, who's coming off a defeat to champion Alexander Volkanovski. With Rodriguez and Ortega both willing to dig deep, their main event fight is almost guaranteed to generate fireworks.
