Issue 143
July 2016
Yair Rodriguez gets airborne to hit a spectacular flying switch-kick KO
There’s arguably no more exciting prospect in the UFC right now than Yair Rodriguez. The Mexican had shown he has an incredible talent in three previous victories in the Octagon, but he hadn’t managed to put a stamp on a fight by connecting with a fight-finishing blow. That all changed at UFC 197. It was a typically aggressive ‘El Pantera’ performance, in which he never stopped attacking with jumping and spinning strikes to keep Andre Fili at bay, but he put an exclamation point on proceedings in the second round when he leapt into the air and unleashed a brain-melting head kick.
‘Touchy’ paused to check his eye after he was tagged with a jab in the previous exchange and Rodriguez pounced. In a split-second, he’d closed the distance and flattened his foe by connecting shin to chin.
His coaches had warned his all-or-nothing, high-flying style could be risky, but the 23-year-old says he doesn’t know any other way to do things: “They always told me since my first fight, but it’s the way I fight. It’s the Yair Rodriguez style.
“It’s the way I’ve fought since I was a kid. I practice my basic boxing and I work every day to be less flashy. But for now I want to be the same Yair Rodriguez as always. I just try to move forward and look for new things.”
It was especially unlikely that the TUF: Latin America winner would temper his aggressive approach when he was supported by a strong Mexican presence in the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Their rallying cries inspired him towards the biggest win of his career.
“I wasn’t surprised because I know a lot of Mexican people live around here,” Rodriguez says. “A lot of friends and family came to watch my fight. I was pretty happy. That motivated me.”
The waiting game
“I knew the guy was coming after me, I knew he was pretty aggressive and I was waiting for him. I just took that chance.”
Counter attack
“He always steps in with his leg, which is why I was kicking him so hard there.”
Change of direction
“I saw him when he closed his eye he was trying to go backwards. There I knew he couldn’t see so I tried to do that switch kick.”
No need for judges
This was Rodriguez’s first UFC KO following three decision wins.
