19-year-old Raul Rosas Jr. says a move to UFC’s featherweight division is inevitable.
[autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag] doesn’t see bantamweight being the permanent home for his fighting career.
The 19-year-old UFC prospect thinks a move up to featherweight is inevitable, given his age and the fact that his body is still growing. This process is already happening, because Rosas Jr. (8-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) has actually felt his body change in the time since he earned a UFC contract on Dana White Contender Series in September 2022.
“I do see my days are numbered at 135 pounds because each weight cut is a little more every fight,” Rosas Jr. told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “For my fight in Contender Series, I didn’t cut anything, then in my debut I cut a little, and then the following a little more, and so on.
“My body is growing, so I do think that I will have to move up to 145 (pounds) very soon. That’s why right now I want to grab the title as fast as possible at 135, and then go up to 145 pounds.”
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There’s no need to enter panic mode on the end being near for Rosas Jr. at bantamweight. He’s still making weight fine, he said, and thinks he can prolong his time in the division for several more fights.
“Yeah, I think a year and a half or two, I want to grab that title and then move up to 145 pounds,” Rosas Jr. said.
“El Niño Problema” is currently the youngest fighter on the UFC roster. He’s 2-1 since signing with the UFC as a 17-year-old.
In his most recent outing back in September on the main card of Noche UFC, Rosas Jr. scored a TKO over Terrence Mitchell in the first round of their contest.
Rosas also told to MMA Junkie that he hopes to be very active in 2024, and be in position to fight for a spot in the rankings at next year’s Noche UFC in September.
Raul Rosas Jr. is aiming for 2024 to be his breakthrough year into the official UFC rankings – and he’s still only 19.
[autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag] has a plan in place as he enters 2024 after rebounding from defeat and still the youngest fighter on the UFC roster.
Despite being just 19 years old and having plenty of time to carry on with his career, Rosas Jr. (8-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) has set an ambitious goal for himself: to fight for a spot in the UFC bantamweight rankings at next year’s Noche UFC.
“I want to be very active, that way by staying active I can be in a position to be fighting for a spot in the rankings on Sept. 16,” Rosas Jr. told MMA Junkie in Spanish regarding his goal for 2024.
“I want to be in this next one (Noche UFC) hopefully. I hear that they’re going to have it at the Sphere. I want to stay active, and when that moment comes, I want to be fighting for a spot in the top 15 rankings, God willing.”
The UFC did its first show celebrating Mexican Independence Day this past Sept. 16 in Las Vegas. UFC CEO Dana White assured that this will be an annual event for the company.
Having fought in the inaugural Noche UFC and defeating Terrence Mitchell by first-round TKO, Rosas Jr. hopes the UFC keeps placing him on these events that honor his heritage.
When asked who he’d think he could potentially face next year, Rosas Jr. didn’t have a specific name given the volatile nature of the division.
“I don’t have any specific name, but I feel I can fight with the best, so I’m willing to fight against anybody,” Rosas Jr. said. “It’s hard to say who I want to fight against because the division is way too stacked, and you just see fighters jumping in and out of the rankings.
“I know that if I fight someone in the rankings next Sept. 16, the rankings are going to look much different than now, so I’m just going to have to wait for now.”
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from September 2023.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from September 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for September.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.
Dana White wants to make Noche UFC an annual tradition, and it’s easy to see why after the success of the inaugural Mexican showcase event.
Noche UFC is here to say. The fight card celebrating Mexican Independence will now be an annual event, according to UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag].
In the main event of this past Saturday’s card, Mexico’s [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] retained her UFC women’s flyweight title after fighting former champion [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] to a split draw in a rematch that was one of the best female title fights in UFC history.
Many other Mexican and Mexican-American talents shinned that night, as [autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag] bounced back from his first defeat, [autotag]Tracy Cortez[/autotag] made a successful return after a year-plus layoff, and highly touted prospects [autotag]Loopy Godinez[/autotag] and [autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag] impressed many with their submission wins.
I was present all week long to cover the historical event. And with the inaugural Noche UFC event now in the books, I’m taking some time to reflect on the execution of celebrating Mexican Independence Day with a themed card.
Below is the good and the bad from fight week, along with an overall grade of Noche UFC:
The Good
Sep 16, 2023; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Alexa Grasso (red gloves) and Valentina Shevchenko (blue gloves) react after the fight during UFC Fight Night at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
UFC gold: Noche UFC might’ve felt like a pay-per-view in the end, but it was a Fight Night. Part of that was mainly due to the championship rematch between Grasso and Shevchenko in the main event, which turned out to be excellent from start to finish.
Usually, at least in this latest era of the promotion, championship fights are reserved for pay-per-view events given their importance and pull from the fan base. However, Noche UFC was given a championship fight, and more importantly, the championship fight.
Sep 16, 2023; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Daniel Zellhuber (red gloves) prepares to fight Christos Giagos (not pictured) during UFC Fight Night at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Mexican presence: Grasso vs. Shevchenko was definitely the biggest piece of the puzzle. However, there needed to be more. Along with Grasso, fans got to see Mexico’s Zellhuber, Godinez, Edgar Chairez, Fernando Padilla, and Mexican-Americans Rosas, Godinez, Cortez, and Alex Reyes.
Eight out of the 11 fights involved Mexico-born fighters or fighters of Mexican descent. On a card built around Mexican Independence Day, it’s obviously crucial to showcase Mexican talent beyond the main event. UFC made sure of that.
The feel: The UFC is always the UFC – for better or worse. The promotion has done a perfect job at being consistent with their branding regardless of who is fighting, and where and when is the event. Although this has created a strong brand for the promotion, it’s also sometimes left fans wanting some fun and creativity.
Noche UFC stood out more than any event in recent memory from a product standpoint. The promotion went above and beyond to make it different, while also keeping their branding. The UFC had an entire new design on its broadcast, reflecting Mexican culture. The graphics and the music, it was all there. They would also show highlights of the Spanish-language broadcast, and they had Mexican star Brandon Moreno come in as a guest color commentator.
And in person there was also work done. The UFC debuted exclusive jerseys to celebrate Mexican Independence, which were seen plenty in the arena. The DJ at the venue played mainly Mexican music with Hispanic hits. And throughout the fight week, there were other things, as well. The UFC had a Q&A panel with Moreno, Marlon Vera and Tatiana Suarez, which was moderated by Spanish-language UFC play-by-play commentator Victor Davila in both English and Spanish. They also had a mariachi band open up the ceremonial weigh-ins.
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The Bad
Some big names missing: This one is tough to judge because it’s mainly outside the UFC’s control, sort of. Yes, there were a good amount of Mexican and Mexican-American fighters on the card, but several important names were not present.
Moreno, Rodriguez and Aldana are the biggest names to come out of Mexico, along with Grasso. Moreno and Rodriguez had tough title losses in July, making a September return unlikely, and Aldana is recovering from a foot surgery.
Also, top prospect Yazmin Jauregui recently had surgery. Kelvin Gastelum, who was originally scheduled to fight Shavkat Rakhmonov on the card, suffered an injury and had to pull out. Mexican-American Brian Ortega has also been on the sidelines recovering from injury.
But even though some names weren’t available, others were, at least not booked, that haven’t recently fought and that are uninjured, at least that we know of. Those names include Gabriel Benitez, Jesus Aguilar, Manuel Torres, Cristian Quiñonez, and Melissa Martinez among others.
The UFC had plenty of names to bolster the Mexican power of Noche UFC. A lot of it was out of their control, and some of it was. Either way, the card could have been stronger with the addition of a few Mexican names.
Location: This event was celebrating Mexican Independence, yet it was done on U.S. soil. Well, technically Las Vegas was part of Mexico for a couple of decades after its independence, but that’s a different story.
Either way, this event would’ve best been served in Mexico. After all, it’s celebrating a Mexican holiday. Now, Las Vegas is not a bad Plan B, and that’s where UFC gets a bit of a pass. It’s tradition to see Mexicans, and especially Mexican-Americans, travel to Las Vegas to celebrate Sept. 16. There are many Mexican entertainment shows for those dates. In fact, Noche UFC was sandwiched by Mexican superstar musician Antonio Silis and legendary Mexican band Maná the day before and after at the T-Mobile Arena.
Again, Las Vegas is not a bad home for Noche UFC, but Mexico is the ideal landing spot.
Joe Martinez
The ‘Official Voice of the Octagon’: I want to be very clear that this is NOT a Bruce Buffer hate section. Buffer is great, and there’s no announcer more synonymous with the UFC than him. Whenever you see Buffer and his flamboyant suits, you know it’s an important night for the promotion.
However, the man built for this job is [autotag]Joe Martinez[/autotag], who was the announcer for WEC and has been announcing UFC events since 2007. He also does a lot of boxing, most famously he announced Canelo vs. GGG in 2018 – one of the biggest fights in recent years.
Martinez is terrific at his job. He’s one of the best announcers out there, and certainly among those of Hispanic heritage. As a Mexican-American, Martinez does a great job pronouncing Hispanic names and adding that extra flavor to the cards. Martinez was a no-brainer for this one and was terribly missed.
Overall grade
Noche UFC gets a 9 out of 10. You can definitely nitpick, but overall it was a success, and the numbers are there to back it.
It was a great gesture for the UFC to finally recognize and further cater to its Mexican audience by celebrating the biggest holiday in the country. Mexico has grown its presence tremendously in the UFC, especially in 2023, and Noche UFC was a landmark event for the growth of Mexican MMA.
What was once exclusive to boxing is now being seen in MMA. The Mexican fighting culture is here to stay in the UFC.
Rosas was being called overhyped by many after his dominant loss to Rodriguez, but according to UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag], the interest was still there to watch him compete – and the numbers prove it.
“It was incredible,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters following Dana White’s Contender Series 63 at the UFC Apex. “He came out and absolutely dominated a real guy, tough guy, and looked good doing it. He got the pop.
“I don’t know what it was like for you guys, but on my socials – I’ll give you an example: the faceoff between Valentina and Alexa did 1.5 million views in less than 24 hours. He did 3 million views in less than 24 hours. He doubled what the main event did and destroyed the rest of the card as far as views. They love that kid.”
White doesn’t think 18-year-old Rosas is ready to headline an event just yet but plans on putting him on the UFC’s next Mexico card after seeing Noche UFC’s success.
“After what happened on Saturday night, we’re going to Mexico,” White said. “He won’t be headlining Mexico, but he’ll be there. So, we’re already in the works for a Mexico fight.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for DWCS 63.
Check out all the facts from Noche UFC, which saw Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko join the shortlist of title bouts to end in a draw.
The inaugural Noche UFC event proved to be a massive success for the company, with the Mexican Independence Day celebration going down Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Although she didn’t get the victory, Mexico’s [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] (16-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) still left as women’s flyweight champion after she battled [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] (23-4-1 MMA, 12-3-1 UFC) to a split draw in their main event rematch.
It was a rare result for a title bout, and for more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Noche UFC.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag]’s confidence never wavered after suffering his first MMA loss, but he gave people a reason to start buying into his hype again at Noche UFC.
Rosas (8-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is still the youngest fighter on the UFC roster. After shining in his debut in December, he succumbed to a one-sided defeat in April for what was the first blemish on his record.
Even though all the naysays pointed to the result as evidence the 18-year-old didn’t belong on this stage so soon, or would never become the champion he’s vocalized he would be, Rosas was never deterred.
So when he entered the cage against Terrence Mitchell (14-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC) on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, he never had the slightest bit of negativity in his mind about his ability, and that translated with a 54-second TKO finish that earned Performance of the Night honors.
“(I) never had any doubts,” Rosas told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at Noche UFC. “(I) never had any doubts about my skills. The only thing that loss changed was my record, and tonight I showed that nothing has changed.”
Rosas said he was prepared for everything Mitchell could offer on fight night. It turned out that wasn’t much, because Rosas cracked him with a massive punch early in the fight then showed tremendous killer instinct in swarming until he got the finish.
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“My grappling and my timing was on point,” Rosas said. “If it touched the ground, I knew I was going to find the submission. We put in a lot of work. I’ve been working lots of grappling. I was just blessed to show everything. I’ve evolved from the last fight. (I) showed my improvements and I was able to do it tonight.”
Despite still only being a teenager, Rosas is clearly comfortable and confident in his own skin. He knows what he wants from his career, and that’s greatness in every aspect. The road to get there is long, but Rosas has the utmost belief he can be something special.
“I’m different,” Rosas said. “I have the potential to be a superstar and break all these records. I’m just being myself, and I’m blessed that I am the way I am. I know I have potential to become one of the biggest superstars of the company.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Noche UFC.
Noche UFC fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.
LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s Noche UFC event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $185,500.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
Noche UFC took place at T-Mobile Arena. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.
The full Noche UFC UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag]: $42,000
vs. [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag]: $32,000
[autotag]Jack Della Maddalena[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag]: $16,000
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2261 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Check out live play-by-play and official results from Noche UFC in Las Vegas, featuring Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko 2.
LAS VEGAS – Noche UFC took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Women’s flyweight champion Alexa Grasso (16-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) took on former champ Valentina Shevchenko (23-4-1 MMA, 12-3-1 UFC), whom she submitted earlier this year to win the title, in the main event rematch. In the co-feature, Jack Della Maddalena (16-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) put his unbeaten UFC record on the line against Kevin Holland (25-10 MMA, 12-7 UFC) at welterweight.
