Frankie Edgar, the living legend himself is gonna fight up-and-coming mixed martial artist Yair Rodriguez…
It’s a big opportunity for both fighters, since it’s a gateway into the title contender scene…
“I’d be stupid not to suspect that, at least,” Edgar said. “It’s kind of win-win for them. This guy beats me, he catapults up the rankings, but if I beat him, there’s no loss for him because he really wasn’t supposed to win. So I feel like it’s a good way to get his name out there, but I’m looking at it in a different way. I’m like a vampire – I’m gonna go get some of that young blood and steal some of his fans,” Edgar told UFC.com.
A victory over Yair Rodriquez could easily put Frankie, a longtime fighter, right back into a title contention spot…
“I think I’m always going to be knocking on the door for a title based on what I’ve done and who I am,” Edgar said. “But yeah, I think Holloway would have to win for me to get that next title shot. I’m not one to root for it, though.”
“Things will play out the way they do and if they don’t, so be it. Ever since I lost that title in 2012, I’ve been gunning for it, and you lose sight of what’s in front of you at times,” he continued. “So right now, I just want to worry about what’s next, keep fighting and stay busy.”
But, while Rodriguez has plenty of good wins under his belt, he hasn’t faced someone as high on the food chain as Edgar in his career, we’ll see if he’s up to the task on May 13th…
“I don’t know,” Edgar laughs. “I don’t think he knows. It’s definitely a big step for him, and we’re gonna find out on fight night for sure. But no matter what, he’s gonna have a bright future in this sport, being so young and being where he is right now,” explained Frankie.
“But there are levels to this and sometimes you can’t get to the next level until you see what’s in front of you, and I feel like I’m still the man. I had that hiccup against Aldo, it wasn’t my best performance. I felt I rebounded nicely against Stephens and I’m still one of the best fighters at 145 and I’m gonna go out and show Yair what it’s all about.”
Tune in to UFC 211: Miocic vs. Dos Santos 2…
Date: Sat., May 13, 2017
Location: American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas
How To Watch It: Pay-Per-View (PPV), FOX Sports 1, UFC Fight Pass
UFC 211 PPV Main Event:
265 lbs.: UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic vs. Junior Dos Santos
UFC 211 PPV Co-Main Event:
115 lbs.: UFC Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Jessica Andrade
UFC 211 PPV Main Card (10 p.m. ET):
170 lbs.: Demian Maia vs. Jorge Masvidal
145 lbs.: Frankie Edgar vs. Yair Rodriguez
125 lbs.: Henry Cejudo vs. Sergio Pettis
UFC 211 Prelims on FOX Sports 1 (8 p.m. ET):
155 lbs.: Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier
145 lbs.: Jason Knight vs. Chas Skelly
185 lbs.: David Branch vs. Krzysztof Jotko
155 lbs.: Marco Polo Reyes vs. James Vick
UFC 211 Prelims on Fight Pass (6 p.m. ET):
115 lbs.: Jessica Aguilar vs. Cortney Casey
145 lbs.: Enrique Barzola vs. Gabriel Benitez
265 lbs.: Dmitry Poberezhets vs. Chase Sherman
145 lbs.: Jared Gordon vs. Michel Quinones
