AUSTIN, Texas – Julian Marquez thinks Gregory Rodrigues is underestimating him.
Marquez (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) meets Rodrigues (11-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 37 main card opener in a clash between two rising middleweights.
It appears Marquez is coming into this bout with a chip on his shoulder, but having finished all his professional MMA fights, he’s looking to surprise Rodrigues with another standout performance.
“He’s a heavy hitter and he’s a jiu-jitsu guy and he’s going to come out there and he’s going to try to hit me,” Marquez said at Wednesday’s media day in Austin, Texas. “He’s going to try to punch me. That’s pretty much it. Let him. That’s what we’re here for, right? I think he’s looking past me. I think he doesn’t respect me as much as he should. A lot of these people don’t respect me enough in the game, and that’s fine.
“I’m a motherf*cker in this game, and every time someone gets in there, they start realizing, ‘Oh sh*t, this guy is a lot better than I thought. This guy is a lot stronger than I thought. This guy is bringing the fight,’ and that’s one thing I think Gregory is overlooking. His accolades are fantastic, his wins are phenomenal, but there’s one difference between him and I, and I just don’t give a f*ck what you bring. I don’t care. You can hit hard, you can be a black belt, you can do all that stuff because I am overall the better fighter.”
Check out Marquez’s full interview in the video above.
UFC on ESPN 37 takes place Saturday at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.
Julian Marquez thinks Gregory Rodrigues is looking past him: ‘I don’t give a f*ck what you bring’
