Marina
Rodriguez earned a signature triumph against Michelle
Waterson in the makeshift
UFC on ESPN 24 headliner on Saturday night.
“It was a very good performance. I knew everything was going to be
different, so I had to prepare my mind and come in with a different
mindset than usual,” Rodriguez said. “I’m pretty happy with the
performance. I wish I could have got a knockout, that’s what I came
here for. It was still a great win over a great opponent.”
Though she didn’t get the finish, Rodriguez attacked with
rapid-fire punching combinations, kicks to various levels and knees
and elbows in the clinch against a durable opponent. The Brazilian
appeared to have Waterson on the retreat a few times, but “The
Karate Hottie” remained competitive for a full 25 minutes.
“I knew she was going to be very tough,” Rodriguez said. “I was
able to hit her with some good punches. There was one hook where I
thought the referee was going to stop it. She’s very tough. You
can’t take that away from her.”
Waterson’s best moment came in Round 4, when she executed a
takedown and spent the better part of three minutes in top
position, battering Rodriguez with punches and elbows from above.
The Jackson-Wink MMA representative couldn’t author a repeat of
that effort in the final frame, as Rodriguez’s takedown defense
held up down the stretch.
“She was able to get me down and she has very good top control. I
tried to get out, but knew I had won the first three rounds,”
Rodriguez said. “I knew I had the win in my hands. I just had to
make sure I didn’t do anything that would risk the win.”
Though the short-notice matchup came at 125 pounds and not at
strawweight, Rodriguez is nonetheless eyeing some big names at 115
pounds for her next Octagon appearance. And if the muay Thai
specialist is somehow able to jump into the title picture, she’ll
take that opportunity, as well.
“I’m looking for a top opponent,” she said. “There’s Xiaonan Yan
versus Carla
Esparza coming up. I don’t think it would be the time to do he
rematch with Esparza—maybe if one of us gets the title we can do
it. If Yan wins, maybe it would be a good fight. Joanna
[Jedrzejczyk] is always a fight I’ve been looking at, because it
would be a fun fight. A lot of girls say they want to fight for a
title, but if the time comes I’m here and ready.”