Adrian Yanez
Record: 10-3
Age: 26
Weight class: Bantamweight
Height: 5’7″
Birthplace: La Porte, Texas
Next Fight: March 13 vs. Ricky Turcios at Fury FC 43 in Houston
Background: [autotag]Adrian Yanez[/autotag] inherited his love of fighting from his father. While the father-son combination loved watching boxing during Yanez’s youth, the future fighter began gravitating toward MMA. One day while walking through the mall with his mother, Yanez stumbled across a jiu-jitsu gym, and the rest was history. Competing for top promotions across Texas including LFA, Fury FC and a one-off in Bellator, Yanez has compiled a solid record through 13 fights. His only three losses have come to UFC fighters Domingo Pilarte and Miles Johns, as well as fellow top prospect Levi Mowles.
The Skinny: If you haven’t seen Yanez fight before, go back and watch his performance against Kyle Estrada at LFA 78 in November. Both fighters had their moments in an exciting display of high-level technicalness. Yanez’s boxing reminds me a lot of Dustin Poirier’s – it’s powerful, sharp and decisive. He’s fielded all on-comers, so the experience and heart have been crafted, too. If Yanez wins March 13, that’ll be four in a row. His opponent that night is arguably his toughest to date, so he has the opportunity to make a real statement here. He could – and should – find himself in the UFC with an impressive victory.
In his own words: “I don’t like be the guy who goes around and says, ‘I’m going to be the next big thing.’ I’m going to be the guy who’s going to show you that’s where I’m heading. I’ve been grinding really hard. All the tough fights I’ve taken, they’re super close decisions. These guys weren’t fighting the same way they fought other people. They were fighting with nervousness, trying to hold on to me the whole entire time, trying to wrestle. I’m just a finisher. I try to take people’s heads off. That’s how I take fighting.
“I’ve had those tough fights where I had to go five rounds. I’ve had those tough fights where I’ve had to dig deep. Getting those finishes for me, it just sets up a great highlight for me. It highlights how I work. If you look at my finishes, they’re all calculated. … I think with a win over Ricky Turcios, that puts me in the UFC. But I’ve also been close to getting a UFC call and haven’t got it. I’m just going to keep on fighting. I’ll fight until I get there.”