Tag: Yair Rodriguez

Yair Rodriguez Rakes in $50,000 Bonus For Thrashing of B.J. Penn

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7EKXk1t0YU

The first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event of 2017 is in the books. Last night’s (Jan. 15) UFC Fight Night card took place inside the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Headlining th…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7EKXk1t0YU

The first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event of 2017 is in the books. Last night’s (Jan. 15) UFC Fight Night card took place inside the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Headlining the event was a featherweight clash between Yair Rodriguez and B.J. Penn.

“El Pantera” earned a TKO victory in the lopsided affair that lasted five minutes and 24 seconds total. Rodriguez’s flashy kicks had “The Prodigy” off balance and backing up in the first round. A front kick followed by a straight punch in the second round marked the beginning of the end for Penn. Just 24 seconds into the second stanza, referee “Big” John McCarthy put a stop to the fight.

The win improved the Mexican warrior’s winning streak to eight. Before the updated rankings, Rodriguez finds himself in the No. 10 spot. A fight against a top 10 opponent seems to be the next step for the rising 145-pounder.

With many fighters booked or injured, it’ll be interesting to see who “El Pantera” meets next. No. 9 ranked Brian Ortega is currently healing a torn labrum. Perhaps a bout with No. 7 ranked Charles Oliveira or the winner of No. 8 ranked Dennis Bermudez and Chan Sung Jung will be next.

For Rodriguez’s efforts last night, he took home a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus. He hasn’t the only one who got paid a bonus. Aleksei Oleinik scored the first Ezekiel choke finish in UFC history. The choke isn’t often seen outside of jiu-jitsu tournaments due to the submission’s dependency on using the gi as leverage. Oleinik earned an extra $50,000 for putting Viktor Pesta to sleep.

The other two men who became $50,000 richer were bantamweights Augusto Mendes and Frankie Saenz. They were awarded “Fight of the Night.” It’s no surprise as the fighters dropped each other in the bout and swung for the fences. Mendes landed the cleaner shots and was awarded the split decision win.

UFC Fight Night 103 Bonuses: Rodriguez Cashes Extra $50,000

UFC Fight Night 103 emanated tonight (Sunday, January 15, 2017) from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. The event was headlined by BJ Penn making his return to the cage against the dynamic Yair Rodriguez. Rodriguez battered Penn with a wide variety of kicks throughout round one, and he ended the night early

The post UFC Fight Night 103 Bonuses: Rodriguez Cashes Extra $50,000 appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

UFC Fight Night 103 emanated tonight (Sunday, January 15, 2017) from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. The event was headlined by BJ Penn making his return to the cage against the dynamic Yair Rodriguez.

Rodriguez battered Penn with a wide variety of kicks throughout round one, and he ended the night early in round two. A front kick and a right hand dropped “The Prodigy”, and Rodriguez pounced for the finish inside the first 30 seconds of round two. For his efforts, Rodriguez was among those who banked an extra $50,000 for his Performance of the Night against the former two-division champion.

The other Performance of the Night went to Alexey Oleinik for his Ezekiel choke of Viktor Pesta. Oleinik latched onto Pesta’s neck with a rear-naked choke grip, but he was on the bottom with Pesta in his half guard. Pesta moved to full mount and suddenly tapped. It was the first Ezekiel choke finish in UFC history, and it earned Oleinik an extra $50,000.

The Fight of the Night went to the featured prelim, as bantamweights Frankie Saenz and Augusto Mendes engaged in a back-and-forth battle for 15 minutes. Both men were wobbled by punches on multiple occasions, but somehow they both gutted it out to hear the final bell. In the end, the judges sided with Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Mendes, who was able to complete several (albeit brief) takedowns during the match. Disappointed though he no doubt was, Saenz received a $50,000 check to match Mendes’ own Fight of the Night bonus.

Keep it locked to LowKickMMA for all the UFC Fight Night 103 coverage.

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Video Highlights: Yair Rodriguez TKOs B.J. Penn At UFC Fight Night 103

https://youtu.be/L6GxAKELF-I

At the UFC Fight Night 103 event in Phoenix, Arizona on Sunday night, former TUF Champion and undefeated rising contender Yair Rodriguez proved he is the real deal.

Rodriguez dominated UFC Hall Of Famer and former two…

https://youtu.be/L6GxAKELF-I

At the UFC Fight Night 103 event in Phoenix, Arizona on Sunday night, former TUF Champion and undefeated rising contender Yair Rodriguez proved he is the real deal.

Rodriguez dominated UFC Hall Of Famer and former two-division World Champion B.J. Penn in “The Prodigy’s” out-of-retirement Octagon return, stopping the Hawiian MMA legend with strikes just 24 seconds into the second round.

Featured above and below courtesy of UFC’s official Twitter, Instagram and YouTube pages, are video highlights of Yair Rodriguez vs. B.J. Penn from Sunday night’s UFC Fight Night 103 event in Phoenix.

For complete UFC Fight Night 103 results, click here.

@PanteraUFC WINNER BY TKO!!! #UFCPhoenix

A photo posted by ufc (@ufc) on

Twitter Reacts To Yair Rodriguez’s Emphatic Victory Over B.J. Penn

UFC Fight Night 103 (also called UFC Phoenix) popped off tonight (Sunday, January 15, 2017) from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Former two-division champion and MMA legend BJ Penn made his oft-delayed return to the cage against dynamic featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez. It did not go well. Penn tried to pressure early on

The post Twitter Reacts To Yair Rodriguez’s Emphatic Victory Over B.J. Penn appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

UFC Fight Night 103 (also called UFC Phoenix) popped off tonight (Sunday, January 15, 2017) from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Former two-division champion and MMA legend BJ Penn made his oft-delayed return to the cage against dynamic featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez. It did not go well.

Penn tried to pressure early on but got cracked by a head kick, and things went downhill from there. Penn became tentative to engage, falling right into the Mexican’s phenom’s hands. Without Penn in his face or threatening takedowns, Rodriguez was free to tee off with the full depth of his kicking arsenal. He battered Penn for most of round two, but BJ’s toughness let him see a second round.

There, Rodriguez closed things in short order. A front kick and a right hand dropped Penn, and referee John McCarthy intervened on Penn’s behalf soon after. With that, Penn’s long-awaited return was spoiled.

In the co-headliner, post-fight bonus king Joe Lauzon battled leg-lock specialist and former Bellator top-contender Marcin Held. The two engaged in a close fight, but most thought Held took it with superior wrestling. Held’s jab and the threat of the takedown stymied the normally uber-aggressive Lauzon. But it was the long-time Octagon vet who emerged with the split decision. Lauzon shook his head as the decision was read and stated that he though Held won in his post-fight interview.

See how Twitter reacted to these action-packed fights below:

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UFC Fight Night 103: Rodriguez vs. Penn Results From Phoenix, Arizona

On Sunday evening, the MMA world likely saw the final Octagon appearance of a true legend.

UFC Hall Of Famer and former two-division World Champion B.J. Penn made his return, losing via stoppage to dangerous undefeated contender Yair Rodriguez, …

On Sunday evening, the MMA world likely saw the final Octagon appearance of a true legend.

UFC Hall Of Famer and former two-division World Champion B.J. Penn made his return, losing via stoppage to dangerous undefeated contender Yair Rodriguez, a former winner of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil.

Rodriguez stopped Penn via TKO at just 24 seconds of the second round after dominating the majority of the fight, blasting the Hawaiian MMA legend with a wide variety of kicks.

Below are UFC Fight Night 103: Rodriguez vs. Penn quick-match results from Phoenix, Arizona:

Main Card (FOX Sports 1)
Yair Rodriguez def. B.J. Penn via technical knockout (Round 2, 0:24)
Joe Lauzon def. Marcin Held via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
Ben Saunders def. Court McGee via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Sergio Pettis def. John Moraga via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Augusto Mendes def. Frankie Saenz via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Oleksiy Oliynk def. Viktor Pesta via submission (Ezekiel choke) (Round 1, 2:57)
Tony Martin def. Alex White via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Walt Harris def. Chase Sherman via knockout (Round 2, 2:41)
Nina Ansaroff def. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger via submission (rear-naked choke) (Round 3, 3:39)
Drakkar Klose def. Devin Powell via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Joachim Christensen def. Bojan Mihaljovic via technical knockout (Round 3, 2:05)
Cyril Asker def. Dmitri Smoliakov via technical knockout (Round 1, 2:41)

Yair Rodriguez Decimates BJ Penn With Violent Precision

UFC Fight Night 103’s headliner saw Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall of Famer B.J. Penn (16-11-2) take on rising featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez (9-1). This was Penn’s first bout since July 2014. “The Prodigy” had come out of retirement. “El Pantera” came into the bout on a seven-fight winning streak. The No. 10 ranked 145-pounder

The post Yair Rodriguez Decimates BJ Penn With Violent Precision appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

UFC Fight Night 103’s headliner saw Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall of Famer B.J. Penn (16-11-2) take on rising featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez (9-1). This was Penn’s first bout since July 2014. “The Prodigy” had come out of retirement.

“El Pantera” came into the bout on a seven-fight winning streak. The No. 10 ranked 145-pounder looked to move past the former two-division champion and face a top 10 fighter.

Things got ugly for Penn quick.

A body kick from Rodriguez followed by a straight punch landed to start the fight. He went for a spinning kick, but Penn pushed him against the fence. Rodriguez got out of the position.

He went high with a kick, but it was blocked. A jumping switch kick was block by Penn. Rodriguez landed a knee to the body. A right hand from Penn found the target.

A hard high kick got Penn off balanced. Rodriguez threw a jumping knee. He threw a spin kick to the body. An inside leg kick had Penn on the canvas briefly. Rodriguez had a cut on the bridge of his nose.

Rodriguez landed a front kick. He kept throwing hard kicks high and to the body. An uppercut in the clinch landed for Penn, but Rodriguez answered with a knee to the body as the round ended.

At the start of round two, Rodriguez dropped Penn with a front kick followed by a straight punch. He landed numerous hammerfists before referee John McCarthy stopped the fight.

Final Result: Yair Rodriguez def. B.J. Penn via TKO (Strikes) – R2, 0:24

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