Yair Rodriguez made a huge statement with his win over “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung at UFC Denver, but it didn’t come easy. “El Pantera” was down on all three judges’ scorecards as the seconds ticked down in their fight, but managed to land an amazing behind the back elbow that knocked out Jung with just one second left in their fight (watch it here).
Rodriguez now holds the record for latest knockout finish in the UFC at 4:59 of round 5. He shares the record for latest finish in the UFC with Demetrious Johnson, who scored a submission win 4:59 of round 5 over Kyoji Horiguchi at UFC 186. Records that can’t be beat, only tied. That’s a pretty good feeling to go along with the cold hard $100,000 in bonus cash he just earned.
It’s not all big money and accolades, though. Rodriguez and Jung both ended up in the hospital, and that’s where “El Pantera” sent a message to his fans who had stuck with him through some of the less flattering moments of the past year and a half.
”Hey to all the beautiful people who continued to support me for this fight, all the people who have kept their faith in me!” he said in Spanish. “I want to say thank you very much, God bless you. It was a fight on short notice, a pretty hard time has passed during my life and my career in recent months but I am very happy to have my job. To have my loved ones with me. I am very happy to have your support.”
”I hope I can continue to perform like that and I hope that you liked the fight. Today we are here about to take some x-rays for my feet and for my nose. My respects for the Korean Zombie, he is a warrior. I send you my respect, affection and appreciation. And to all your team too. Greetings to all the people of Korea, God bless you.”
Yair Rodriguez was released from a local Denver hospital earlier this morning, per his manager @tikighosn. No broken bones. He’s back resting now.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 11, 2018
Even with the good news that nothing is broken, we expect Yair may take a bit of time to heal up before fighting again. Whenever he returns, it doesn’t seem like his time in the UFC is going to get any easier. Hot on the heels of that ridiculous elbow knockout, former almost-opponent Zabit Magomedsharipov let the world know he’s still thinking about the Rodriguez fight.
Will he ever call my name?? Or should I move on?? @seanshelby @danawhite @ufc https://t.co/zkSBusDKOS
— Zabit Magomedsharipov (@zabeast_mma) November 11, 2018
A tough match-up for sure, but as we learned on Saturday, Yair Rodriguez can turn things around in a second.