The youngest fighter on the UFC roster, Raul Rosas Jr, returns to action this Saturday against Ricky Turcios as the promotion heads to the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky for the 12th Fight Night event of 2024. Despite his upset defeat to Christian Rodriguez just over a year ago, the teenage sensation has an opportunity to trigger his first win streak since signing from Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022.
The Remarkable Rise of Raul Rosas Jr
Debuting at 18 years, two months, and two days old, at UFC 282, “El Nino Problema” quickly became one of the biggest prospects across the mixed martial arts landscape. His age wasn’t the only thing that drew the attention of most MMA fanatics. He could also composedly pick his opponents apart, albeit at such a raw career stage.
Earning a UFC contract after beating Mando Gutierrez on DWCS put the entire sport on notice, and capitalising on the hype during his debut against Jay Perrin was key if Rosas Jr wanted to become a superstar. Fashionably submitting Perrin via neck crank made him the company’s shiny new toy and a roadmap to bantamweight gold was almost set in stone.
Next, a hungry Christian Rodriguez stood in the way of Rosas Jr in a bid to derail the hype train, and “CeeRod” did so successfully. Losing 29-28 on all of the judges’ scorecards dealt a slight blow to the UFC newcomer, though it will ultimately be a valuable lesson in the long run.
Back to winning ways at UFC Noche, it only took 54 seconds for Rosas Jr to put away Terrence Mitchell, emphatically. Knocking his opponent down with a straight left and unloading on Mitchell, while he was grounded, sent out a message. El Nino Problema is just getting started.
El Nino Problema’s Fight Style
Already amassing a professional record of 8-1, Rosas Jr has a diverse style when it comes to competing. As he continued to hone his slick switch-hitting stand-up from a young age, the 19-year-old has seemingly acknowledged that his grappling must improve to become a top contender. Consequently, cracking down on his outstanding ground game has only sky-rocketed the profile of Rosas Jr in mixed martial arts. When he defeated two Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts on his road to becoming the 155lbs Submission Only Series winner, at just 16 years old, only reinforces his ceiling.
Although he holds an immense understanding of various disciplines, the proof is in the pudding when identifying what he enjoys most, following five of his eight professional MMA wins coming via submission. Averaging 3.57 takedowns every 15 minutes justifies his quality in the grappling department, and Rosas Jr’s father being a boxing coach has also enhanced his ability to stand and bang.
His Opponent: “Pretty Ricky” Turcios
As a result of his well-rounded style and rugged nature, Turcios is certainly no pushover. At the age of 24, he squandered his chance of becoming a UFC fighter when losing in the final of Dana White’s Contender Series against Boston Salmon in 2017. But to come back four years later, winning in DWCS against Brady Hiestand, and persisting with his dream is nothing short of impressive and just shows the Texas representative’s ambition.
Since earning a contract from DWCS, the 30-year-old has a patchy record with two wins and one loss. Turcios has not fought since his split decision victory over Kevin Natividad, which was a year and a half ago. Now, he must hastily shake off the ring rust as his ruthless opponent will be smelling blood the moment they both step into that octagon.
Previously penciled in for UFC Mexico City on 24th February, the fight was abruptly cancelled just minutes before the two fighters were scheduled to walk to the octagon. After overcoming his fight night illness, Rosas Jr is now prepared to meet “Pretty” Turcios in the centre. On Saturday, we should expect an advancement toward the bantamweight rankings for the motivated Mexican, or could we witness another setback?
Featured image credit to Embed from Getty Images
