Meet Yair Rodriguez, a professional UFC fighter standing at 5’11” and weighing 145 lbs.
With a career record of 16 wins and three losses, Rodriguez fights in the featherweight division of UFC and is an orthodox striker with a unique blend of different striking styles.
Born in Mexico where boxing is deeply respected and a part of their culture, Rodriguez began learning taekwondo and boxing at the age of 5.
He is a black belt in taekwondo and is known for his dynamic striking abilities, particularly his impressive kicking skills.
Yair Rodriguez is also known for being a creative fighter who is always looking for new and innovative ways to land his strikes.
With his unique style, extensive martial arts background and being raised in a culture where boxing is celebrated, Rodriguez is definitely a force to be reckoned with in the octagon.
Yair Rodriguez family details
Yair Rodriguez, born on October 6, 1992 in Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico, was raised by parents Rigoberto Rodriguez Olivas and Norma Alicia Portillo.
Along with his brother and sister, Yair was part of a close-knit family, including a cousin, Olympic boxer Misael Uziel Rodriguez Olivas, who won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Yair Rodriguez is a highly dedicated fighter, who is very attached to his mother.
Growing up, he never had many friends and always had a mindset of wanting to train. He avoids parties and spends most of his time in the gym, honing his skills and working towards his goal of becoming a champion. His commitment to his training and passion for martial arts is unmatched, and it is evident in his performances inside the octagon.
Rodriguez’s hard work and dedication to his craft have made him a formidable opponent and a star in the UFC.
Yair Rodriguez early career
Yair Rodriguez was born in Mexico where boxing and soccer are highly respected. Growing up, he watched Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., a famous boxer.
Yair started learning taekwondo at the age of 5 and from a very young age, he enjoyed kicking more than punching. He was inspired to pursue MMA after watching B.J. Penn’s fights on YouTube, and used to watch MMA videos with his brother and cousin, including fights of Fedor Emelianenko and Anderson Silva.
After learning Judo, Boxing, and Kickboxing, Yair joined an MMA gym at the age of 17. He later moved to Chicago to continue his training with his coach Mike Valle. Rikardo Morales was Yair’s first MMA coach, and Jose Luis Martinez and Edgar Lopez also helped Yair at the early stage of his career.
Yair struggled financially since childhood, and even after joining the UFC, he was short of money. In an interview with Ariel Helwani in 2015, Yair revealed that he had less than $400 before a fight. Despite these challenges, he went on to become an interim UFC featherweight champion in 2023.
Yair’s first fight was on January 29, 2011, at Parral, Chihuahua, where he won the match via K.O. in just 1 minute and 37 seconds. Raman Garcia of Mexican Fighter’s Promotion was the first person to recognize Yair’s talent and gave him an opportunity.
Yair’s first loss in his career was against Luis Roberto Herrera on December 12, 2012, at Mexican Fighter promotions 13 by first-round knockout.
However, he then went on to win “The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America” title for the featherweight division in November, 2014. With a career record of 5 wins and 1 loss, Yair joined the UFC after winning “The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America” and has since become a mainstay in the UFC. He has won 10 fights and lost 2 fights in his UFC career.
Yair trains for 6-7 hours a day. The first session of the training is at 8 am with head coach Mike Valle. The second training session begins at 12 pm with coaches Luiz Claudio and Tiago Viera, who train for strength and conditioning and Jiu-Jitsu. The third training session starts at 7 pm and ends at 8 pm or 9 pm.
In 2020, Yair was suspended for six months by USADA for failing to file his location for random testing. He was not being professional and lost track of updating his location, which led to three strikes and the suspension.
Despite the suspension, Yair did not complain and continued working hard to achieve his dream of becoming a UFC champion. On February 11, 2023, Yair achieved his dream by winning the UFC featherweight title at UFC 284.
Yair Rodriguez Career stats
| Nickname | El Pantera |
| Age | 30 (06.10.1992) |
| Height | 180.34 cms (5 feet 11 inches ) |
| Weight | 65.77 kg (145 Lbs) |
| Category | Feather Weight |
| Fighting Style | Boxing and Taekwondo |
| UFC Debut | November 15, 2014 |
| Current Ranking | Interim Featherweight Champion |
| Best Ranking | #1 |
| Total Fights | 18 |
| Won | 15 |
| Lost | 3 |
| Win By Submission | 5 |
| Win By knockout/Technical Knockout | 6 |
| Win By Decision | 6 |
| Striking Percentage | 46% |
| Takedown Accuracy | 28% |
| First Round Wins/loss | 4/1 |
| Second Round Wins/loss | 3/1 |
| Third Round Wins/loss | 6/0 |
| Fourth Round Wins/loss | 0/0 |
| Fifth Round Wins/loss | 2/1 |
| Total Fights in UFC | 13 |
| Fights Won in UFC | 10 |
| Fights Lost in UFC | 2 |
| Consecutive wins in UFC | 6 |
| Title Defences | 0 |
| No of Consecutive Title Defences | 0 |
| Title Reigns | February 12, 2023 to today. |
| No of Main Event Fights in UFC | 6 |
| No of Fight of the Night award | 5 |
| No of Performance of the Night award | 4 |
Awards and Records by Yair Rodriguez
- Ultimate Fighter Latin America Featherweight tournament 2014 title winner.
- Won MMA fighting’s 2018 Knockout of the year award Vs. Korean Zombie Chan Sung Jung.
- Mexican Fighter Promotion’s former FMP Featherweight Champion.
- Honoured as outstanding and exemplary Mexican athlete award for the year 2017 by Mexico’s Congressional Chamber.
- Latest finish in UFC history at 04:59 of round five.
Yair Rodriguez UFC career
1) Yair Rodriguez vs. Leonardo Morales
Yair’s first fight under UFC was ‘The Ultimate Fighter:Latin America’ finals.
He battled Leonardo Morales for the title on November 15,2014 at Distrito Federal, Mexico.
In the first round, Rodriguez took down Morales and tried to submit him with two armbar attempts and a heel hook attempt. Referee stopped the fight briefly due to an alleged fence grab. Morales scored a left hand that hurt Rodriguez.
In the second round, Rodriguez secured another takedown and attempted submissions, but Morales escaped. Morales landed kicks while Rodriguez attempted to strike back.
Both fighters accidentally kicked each other in the groin, causing a brief halt to the fight. Morales tried to take down Rodriguez, but couldn’t maintain control.
Both fighters finished the fight throwing wild combinations, with Morales slightly getting the better of it.
Ultimately, Rodriguez won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 29-28 from all three judges.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-3 | Yair Rodriguez | Leonardo Morales |
| Strikes | (12), (03), (20) | (10), (19), (18) |
| Take downs | 1, 1, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (46), (33), (39) | (41), (62), (45) |
| Sub.Attempt | 3,2,0 | 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdowns | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Leonardo Morales |
| 41 Strikes | 47 Strikes |
| 2 take downs | 0 take downs |
| 40% Sig.Strikes | 45% Sig.Strikes |
| 5 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdowns | 0 Knockdowns |
Match Result : Yair Rodriguez defeated Leonardo Morales via Unanimous decision.
Scorecard details : 29-28, 29-28, 29-28.
2) Yair Rodriguez vs. Charles Rosa
After his first UFC win Rodriguez moved to Chicago and started working full time with Valle and Israel Martinez.
Martinez is the head coach of wrestling at the Jackson Wink MMA which has trained famous UFC stars such as Jon Jones and Holly Holm.
In his second UFC fight he faced Charles Rosa on June 13,2015 at Distrito Federal, Mexico.
In the first round, Rodriguez attacked Rosa with flashy kicks and locked in a triangle choke, while in the second round, Rosa’s output dropped, and he looked for takedowns.
Rodriguez attacked Rosa’s legs and had an easy reversal. Rosa had better luck in the third round, winning the fight for takedowns and delivering ground and pound. However, Rodriguez won the fight.
Rodriguez won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 29-28 twice for Rodriguez and 29-28 for Rosa.
Both fighters won fight of the night bonus award.
Rodriguez vomited during a post-fight interview due to exhaustion.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-3 | Yair Rodriguez | Charles Rosa |
| Strikes | (13), (39), (45) | (19), (15), (33) |
| Take downs | (0), (1), (0) | (2), (1), (2) |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (52), (56), (57) | (56), (41), (55) |
| Sub.Attempt | 1, 0, 1 | 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdowns | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Charles Rosa |
| 56 strikes | 39 Strikes |
| 1 take downs | 5 take downs |
| 56% Sig.Strikes | 49% Sig.Strikes |
| 2 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Yair Rodriguez won via Split Decision.
Scorecard details: 28-29, 29-28, 29-28.
3) Yair Rodriguez vs. Dan Hooker
After two consecutive wins Yair faced The Hangman Dan Hooker. Dan Hooker after a big win vs Hatsu Hioki, in his previous match looks very confident against Yair Rodriguez.
The bout happened on UFC 192 on 03rd October, 2015 at Toyota Center in Houston.
Rodriguez used a lot of leg kicks and spinning kicks to keep Hooker on his back foot, and almost choked him out in Round 1.
In Round 2, Rodriguez landed a spinning back elbow and then used an unorthodox “rolling thunder kick” that stunned Hooker.
They continued to exchange blows, and Rodriguez executed a takedown to end the round.
In Round 3, Hooker accidentally hit Rodriguez in the groin with a knee, but Rodriguez recovered. They traded hammerfists and the referee stood them up to check a cut on Hooker’s face. The fight ended with Rodriguez missing a summersault kick, but he won on the scorecards with unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 30-26.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-3 | Yair Rodriguez | Dan Hooker |
| Strikes | (15), (23), (29) | (12), (20), (53) |
| Take downs | 1, 1, 0 | 0, 0, 1 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (56), (45), (51) | (14), (27), (24) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Dan Hooker |
| 67 Strikes | 85 strikes |
| 2 take downs | 1 take downs |
| 50% Sig.Strikes | 24% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Yair Rodriguez defeated Dan Hooker via Unanimous Decision.
Scorecard details: 30-27, 30-27, 30-26.
4) Yair Rodriguez vs. Andre Fili
After three consecutive victories in UFC, People are very excited to watch Yair in the Octagon and his matches were already hyped. But in order maintain that, he needs to win his upcoming fight against Andre Fili.
Yair faced Andre Fili on April 23, 2016 at UFC 197, Las Vegas, USA.
The bout lasted only two rounds and Yair Rodriguez won the fight in the second round by kicking Andre Fili in the head with a very fast kick, which made Andre Fili lose consciousness and the fight was stopped.
Rodriguez won $50,000 along with flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson and Performance of the night honors for his performance.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-3 | Yair Rodriguez | Andre Fili |
| Strikes | (26), (13) | (14), (6) |
| Take downs | 1,1 | 0, 1 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (50), (42) | (38), (30) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0 | 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 1, 0 | 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Andre Fili |
| 39 strikes | 20 Strikes |
| 2 take downs | 1 take downs |
| 47% Sig.Strikes | 35% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 1 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Yair Rodriguez defeated Andre Fili by KO/TKO (Kick to Head).
5) Yair Rodriguez vs. Alex Caceres
Following the impressive victory over Fili, Rodriguez was headlined against Alex Caceres by UFC in August.
The bout took place on August 06, 2016 at Salt Lake City, USA. The fight was the main event of the night and lasted 5 rounds.
Rodriguez was more effective by using unusual hits. Although Caceres also had some good attacks, he couldn’t do as much as Rodriguez.
One judge thought that Caceres won by a score of 49-46, but the other two judges gave Rodriguez the victory with scores of 48-47, making Rodriguez the winner by a split-decision.
Both the fighters won $50,000 each and awarded fight of the night award for their bout.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-5 | Yair Rodriguez | Alex Caceres |
| Strikes | (16), (23), (27), (25), (33) | (8), (6), (14), (14), (23) |
| Take downs | 0, 0, 0, 0, 1 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 1 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (27), (37), (37), (40), (34) | (30), (20), (35), (26),(40) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Alex Caceres |
| 124 Strikes | 65 Strikes |
| 1 take downs | 1 take downs |
| 35% Sig.Strikes | 31% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Yair Rodriguez defeated Alex Caceres via Split decision.
Scorecard details: 46-49, 48-47, 48-47.
6) Yair Rodriguez vs BJ Penn
After 5 consecutive wins, Yair improved his fighting skills by joining hands with Coach Luiz Claudio, jiu-jitsu Coach and Conor Beebe , wrestling coach.
Yair’s next fight was also a main event fight against “The Prodigy” BJ Penn. The match was broadcasted on Fox on the same day the NFC divisional-round playoffs were played.
The fight held on 15th January, 2017 and as expected Rodriguez finished the bout with an easy second round KO. Yair was awarded $50,000 and performance of the night award for this bout.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-2 | Yair Rodriguez | BJ Penn |
| Strikes | (38), (18) | (7), (0) |
| Take downs | 0, 0 | 0, 0 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (50), (47) | (18), (-) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0 | 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 1 | 0,0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | BJ Penn |
| 56 strikes | 7 Strikes |
| 0 take downs | 0 take downs |
| 49% Sig.Strikes | 18% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 1 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result : Yair Rodriguez defeated BJ Penn via KO/TKO (Punches to head).
7) Yair Rodriguez vs. Frankie Edgar
Yair after defeating former multiple division champion BJ Penn faced hard test against Frankie Edgar. Edgar has a record for not losing a single non-title fight in the UFC for the past 9 years at that time.
The fight between these two took place at UFC 211, American Airlines Center in Dallas on May 13, 2017.
Edgar dominated the fight against Rodriguez by taking him down and hitting him with punches and elbows from inside his guard. Rodriguez’s left eye was badly swollen and closed completely by the end of the second round.
The fight was stopped by the referee and doctors, giving Edgar a TKO victory over Rodriguez.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-2 | Yair Rodriguez | Frankie Edgar |
| Strikes | (16), (13) | (51), (45) |
| Take downs | 0, 0 | 1, 0 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (38), (37) | (70), (69) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 1 | 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0 | 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Frankie Edgar |
| 29 strikes | 96 Strikes |
| 0 take down | 1 take down |
| 38% Sig.Strikes | 69% Sig.Strikes |
| 1 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result : Frankie Edgar defeated Yair Rodriguez by TKO (Doctor’s Stoppage).
8) Yair Rodriguez vs Chan Sung Jung
After suffering his first career defeat in UFC, Rodriguez took 18 months to fight in the UFC.
In between those times, he had a difficult time with the UFC and refused to fight at UFC 227.
He was cut from the UFC after he refused to fight in August, but then he agreed to fight a fighter named Zabit Magomedsharipov. Unfortunately, he got injured and couldn’t fight.
After many rumours, Yair Rodriguez vs. “Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung was main carded for UFC Fight Night at Denver, Colorado, USA on 10th November, 2018.
Korean Zombie has won four of his last five fights.
On 10th November, the crowd cheered as Rodriguez and Jung stepped into the ring, their eyes locked in a fierce glare.
Rodriguez struck first, his straight punch connecting with Jung’s face and causing him to stumble back.
But Jung quickly regained his footing and launched a flurry of punches at Rodriguez, who expertly dodged and weaved, responding with kicks to Jung’s legs. The sound of flesh striking flesh echoed throughout the arena as the two warriors exchanged blows, neither willing to give an inch.
In the second round, Jung managed to get the upper hand, delivering a powerful kick to Rodriguez’s side and then slamming him against the wall.
The referee separated them, giving them a brief moment to catch their breath before the fight resumed.
In the third and fourth rounds, the two fighters continued to battle fiercely, each taking turns delivering punishing blows to the other’s body and face.
By the fifth and final round, both Rodriguez and Jung were exhausted, their bodies bruised and battered from the brutal fight. It was then that Rodriguez landed the final blow, a devastating elbow strike that sent Jung crashing to the mat. As the referee counted Jung out, Rodriguez raised his arms in triumph, the victor of an epic battle that would be remembered for years to come.
Yair won $ 100,000 and awarded both performance of the night and fight of the night award for this epic bout. He also won knockout of the year award for 2018.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-5 | Yair Rodriguez | Chan Sung Jung |
| Strikes | (23), (33), (22), (19), (32) | (31), (25), (24), (25), (25) |
| Take downs | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (56), (51), (37), (35), (43) | (44), (42), (35), (43), (39) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0, 0, 0, 1 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Chan Sung Jung |
| 129 strikes | 130 Strikes |
| 0 take down | 0 take down |
| 43% Sig.Strikes | 40% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 1 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result : Yair Rodriguez defeated Chan Sung Jung via KO/TKO (Elbow to head).
9) Yair Rodriguez vs Jeremy Stephens
After an epic battle against Korean Zombie, Yair’s next battle ended in disappointment. Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens main event fight on September 2019 was ruled a no contest due to accidental eye poke by Yair Rodriguez in the first round.
The rematch between these two took place 18th October, 2019 at Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
In the first round, Rodriguez tried to take down Stephens, but Stephens was able to block him and they ended up wrestling against the fence.
Stephens struggled to get close to Rodriguez without getting hit. Rodriguez landed kicks and punches on Stephens, even taking him down to the ground.
In the second round, Rodriguez continued to hit Stephens with kicks and punches, and Stephens had a hard time standing. Stephens was able to take Rodriguez down twice in the third round, but Rodriguez’s ground game prevented Stephens from doing much damage.
The two fighters hugged at the end of the fight.
Both fighters won $ 50,000 each and won fight of the night award.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-3 | Yair Rodriguez | Jeremy Stephens |
| Strikes | (39), (62), (35) | (11), (21), (67) |
| Take downs | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 1, 2 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (55), (56), (59) | (45), (50), (57) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Jeremy Stephens |
| 96 strikes | 50 Strikes |
| 0 take down | 3 take downs |
| 56% Sig.Strikes | 52% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result : Yair Rodriguez won via Unanimous decision.
Scorecard details: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28.
10) Yair Rodriguez vs Max Holloway
Yair coming back with an impressive win was against caught into trouble in 2020, Yair was suspended for six months by USADA for failing to file his location for random testing.
He was not being professional and lost track of updating his location, which led to three strikes and the suspension. He waited until March 2021 to book his next bout.
After coming back from suspension, he faced former champion and number one ranked Max Holloway at UFC fight night 197, Las Vegas on 13th November, 2021. The winner of this match will get a title shot for the featherweight title to face Alexander Volkanovski.
Yair was ranked 3rd in the featherweight division at that time.
In the first round, both fighters hit each other cleanly. Rodriguez hit Holloway with combinations and leg kicks while Holloway hit back with his punches.
With both hitting each other often. Rodriguez tried to counter while Holloway pushed forward. Rodriguez tried to change the fight by kicking more often. Holloway hit Rodriguez with punches, but also got hit with an elbow.
In the third round, Holloway hit Rodriguez with a flying knee to the body and then tried to submit him.
In the fourth round, Rodriguez’s face was bruised and cut. Holloway tried to submit Rodriguez again, but Rodriguez got the fight standing again.
They fought hard in the final round, but Holloway won the fight. The judges gave him the victory by a score of 46-49, 47-48, 47-48 .
The crowd roared as Holloway raised his arms in victory, and Rodriguez showed his respect by embracing him in a show of sportsmanship.
Both the fighters won $ 50,000 and fight of the night award for their classic battle.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-5 | Yair Rodriguez | Max Holloway |
| Strikes | (38), (43), (20), (28),(57) | (42), (59), (46), (49), (55) |
| Take downs | 0, 0, 1, 0, 0 | 1, 0, 1, 1, 0 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (46), (50), (42), (37), (46) | (66), (52), (57), (55), (56) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 0, 0, 0,0 | 0, 0, 1, 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Max Holloway |
| 186 strikes | 251 Strikes |
| 1 take downs | 3 take downs |
| 45% Sig.Strikes | 56% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 1 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Max Holloway defeated Yair Rodriguez via unanimous decision
Scorecard details: 46-49, 47-48, 47-48.
11) Yair Rodriguez vs. Brain Ortega
After giving a classic fight to the UFC fans, Yair was scheduled to fight Brain Ortega on 16th July, 2022 at New York, USA.
Yair was good at striking whereas Brain Ortega was a great jiu-jitsu fighter. Both fighters have become more versatile and can fight well in both submission moves and striking.
The fight between these two didn’t last very long, but Yair Rodriguez was the one who caused the most damage. He hit Brian Ortega with kicks and punches to his head and body.
Ortega managed to hold Rodriguez against the cage and even take him down, but then Rodriguez tried to submit him with an armbar. Ortega managed to get out of the submission, but hurt his shoulder in the process and couldn’t continue fighting and Yair was announced as a winner.
Ortega has now lost two fights in a row for the first time in his career. He lost his previous fight in a title bout, and this time he lost due to injury.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1 | Yair Rodriguez | Brain Ortega |
| Strikes | 48 | 26 |
| Take downs | 0 | 1 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | 50 | 62 |
| Sub.Attempt | 0 | 0 |
| Knockdown | 0 | 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Brain Ortega |
| 48 strikes | 26 Strikes |
| 0 take down | 1 take down |
| 50% Sig.Strikes | 62% Sig.Strikes |
| 0 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result : Yair Rodriguez won via KO/TKO (shoulder injury to Brain Ortega).
12) Yair Rodriguez vs. Josh Emmett
After a win over Brain Ortega, Yair was given a title shot for the interim featherweight championship vs Josh Emmett. This was Yair’s first UFC title fight. Josh on the other side has won all of his last five fights. It was a kicker vs. Boxer match up.
The co-main event happened on 11th February,2023 at UFC 284, Perth, Australia.
Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett started the fight with kicks and punches. Rodriguez hit Emmett hard in the body, and they both threw punches quickly.
Emmett landed a hard punch that knocked Rodriguez down, but he wasn’t hurt and fought back with sharp elbows while lying on his back.
In the second round, Rodriguez hit Emmett with more kicks to the same spot that hurt him before. They traded punches and kicks, and then Emmett tried to take Rodriguez down.
Rodriguez kept hitting him with elbows and punches from his back, and then he managed to put Emmett in a triangle submission that he couldn’t get out of.
Rodriguez won the fight by submission, and it was his first submission win in the UFC.Yair won $50,000 and performance of the night award for his firing performance.
He also achieved his dream by winning the UFC featherweight title at UFC 284.
Match Stats (Round Wise)
| Round 1-2 | Yair Rodriguez | Josh Emmett |
| Strikes | (32), (66) | (18), (17) |
| Take down | 0, 0 | 0, 1 |
| Sig.Strikes (in %) | (49), (66) | (46), (38) |
| Sub.Attempt | 0, 1 | 0, 0 |
| Knockdown | 0, 0 | 0, 0 |
Overall Match Stats
| Yair Rodriguez | Josh Emmett |
| 98 strikes | 35 Strikes |
| 0 take down | 1 take down |
| 57% Sig.Strikes | 42% Sig.Strikes |
| 1 Sub.Attempt | 0 Sub.Attempt |
| 0 Knockdown | 0 Knockdown |
Match Result: Yair Rodriguez defeated Josh Emmett by submission (Triangle Choke).
Yair Rodriguez Current status
Yair Rodriguez is currently focused on training for his upcoming fight against UFC featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski.
The highly anticipated bout is expected to take place at UFC 290 in July, and is a unification bout between the interim champion and the current champion.
As he prepares for this crucial fight, Rodriguez will undoubtedly be pushing himself to the limit in training, with hopes of claiming the featherweight title and cementing his place as one of the top fighters in the UFC.
Yair Rodriguez Net worth
Yair Rodriguez’s net worth is estimated to be $ 7 Million. He has won 4 Fight of the Night awards and 3 Performance of the Night awards.
He has earned a total of $ 1,777,500 from all his fights and awards from UFC.
The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay for Yair Rodriguez is $ 32,000 for his last fight against Josh Emmett.
Yair Rodriguez was ranked 140th among the highest-paid UFC fighters for the year 2022, earning $211,000.
| Opponent | Year | Total Earning | Match Result |
| vs. Leonardo Morales | 2014 | $ 16,000 | W |
| vs. Charles Rosa | 2015 | $ 95,500 | W |
| vs. Andre Fili | 2016 | $ 95,000 | W |
| vs. Alex Caceres | 2016 | $ 153,500 | W |
| vs. BJ Penn | 2017 | $ 154,000 | W |
| vs. Frankie Edgar | 2017 | $ 56,000 | L |
| vs. Chan Sung Jung | 2018 | $ 225,000 | W |
| vs. Jeremy Stephens | 2019 | $ 145,000 | NC |
| vs. Jeremy Stephens | 2019 | $ 195,000 | W |
| vs. Max Holloway | 2021 | $ 161,000 | L |
| vs. Brain Ortega | 2022 | $ 211,000 | W |
| vs. Josh Emmett | 2023 | $ 270,000 | W |
Total earning from UFC fights = $ 1,777,500.
UFC stars about Yair Rodriguez
Michael Chiesa- “Yair makes it impossible for his opponents to not absorb damage. So creative, dynamic and down right violent. He is very special talent.”
Terrance McKinney- “One of the best martial artists in the game”.
Max Holloway- “Toughest sport in the world. But for some of us what happens in the Octagon is the easier parts of life. Yair is one of those fighters. If you want to understand how Yair does his ninja stuff, look at his team. If you want to understand why, look at his family and the sacrifices they’ve made together to make it to the Octagon. Shout outs to Parral, Chihuahua. Love you, brother. Looking forward to your championship reign some day. We should be amigos, probably.”
Stephen Thompson – “Yair is such an amazing martial artist!! One of the most diverse fighters I’ve ever seen! Congrats..”
Chael Sonnen- “Yair Rodriguez, remember that fight with the Zombie? When he ducks down, lifts an elbow, and knocks him out at four minutes and 59 seconds? I mean, that’s truly unbelievable… Yair Rodriguez would go down as the most dynamic guy that I have ever seen, and I watched all of Demetrious Johnson’s fights. I have Demetrious at number two. In terms of sheer creativity in what he’s going to do and the video game-esque techniques that he’s gonna do that are gonna stump the announce team from telling the audience because the announce team has never seen it before, I put Yair Rodriguez at number one”
Vignesh Subrmanian doesn’t just watch sports, he dissects them. A former college athlete with a stat-cracking obsession, he dives deep into the numbers, analyzes player tendencies, and crunches data to deliver insights that leave you breathless.Vignesh will help you discover who’s the best and win every sports debate with fellow fans!
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