Christian Rodriguez didn’t receive as much attention as his opponent Raul Rosas Jr. prior to UFC 287, but in the end, he captured what was most important.
In the UFC 287 main card opener Saturday at Kaseya Center in Miami, Rodriguez (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) defeated Raul Rosas Jr. via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
The first round was not easy for Rodriguez as it was nearly the last. At multiple points in the opening minutes, Rosas Jr. (7-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) smothered and nearly submitted Rodriguez with submission attempts, particularly a standing rear-naked choke.
Rodriguez survived the round, however, and that’s when things turned in his direction. Rosas Jr. was noticeably slowed, mouth open as he breathed heavily. The tides slowly turned as Rodriguez began to win more of the exchanges, particularly in the grappling.
In the final 10 minutes, Rodriguez used his heavy wrestling and grappling to attempt submissions of his own. Hard ground-and-pound from mount in Round 3 was perhaps the most damaging offense for either fighter in the bout. The fight ended with Rodriguez on top, the victor by the three judges and even Rosas Jr. who acknowledged a likely defeat prior to the official scorecard reading.
Christian Rodriguez gets it done! 👊@ceerod97 hands Raul Rosas Jr. his first career loss at #UFC287! pic.twitter.com/cmV9CkbirH
— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023
Rodriguez, 25, apologized after the bout for his weight miss Friday when he tipped the scales one pound over the bantamweight limit. Rodriguez wins for the second time in his three-fight UFC tenure. The win comes on the heels of his first UFC victory, a submission win over Joshua Weems at UFC Fight Night 213 in October.
Rosas Jr., 18, loses for the first time as an MMA fighter. In 2022, Rosas Jr. became the youngest fighter in the promotion’s history when he signed after a win on “Dana White’s Contender Series” at age 17. In order to compete on the series, Rosas Jr.’s parents were required to fill out and sign a special waiver. Rosas Jr. made his promotional debut at UFC 282 in December when he made quick work of Jay Perrin with a sub-three-minute submission.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 287 results include:
- Christian Rodriguez def. Raul Rosas Jr. via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Kelvin Gastelum def. Chris Curtis via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Luana Pinheiro def. Michelle Waterson-Gomez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Joe Pyfer def. Gerald Meerschaert via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:15
- Loopy Godinez def. Cynthia Calvillo via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
- Ignacio Bahamondes def. Trey Ogden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Steve Garcia def. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke via knockout (body kick, punches) – Round 2, 0:36
- Sam Hughes def. Jaqueline Amorim via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
