LAS VEGAS – Eighteen-year-old UFC bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr.’s confidence remains high after experiencing the first loss of his professional MMA career.
After becoming the youngest fighter to earn a UFC contract at 17 through the Dana White’s Contender Series pipeline, Rosas (7-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) lived up to the hype in his promotional debut by submitting Jay Perrin in the first round of their UFC 282 preliminary card bout. However, in his next outing, Rosas was tested by Christian Rodriguez at UFC 287, and ultimately ended up on the wrong side of a unanimous decision.
Following the loss, Rosas didn’t get down on himself or his promise as a rising star. He simply went back to the training room, analyzed his mistakes, and is now ready to get back in the win column.
“A lot of mistakes. There was a lot, I can’t even count,” Rosas told reporters about his last fight during an open workout media scrum at the UFC Apex. “But it was my fault. My team did the work, everybody did the work except me. So, it was on me. … There was never no pressure. Like I said, I’m my own process, my own journey. I only see gold, so everything else doesn’t matter to me.”
Rosas has never made excuses for his performance, and believes the push that surrounded his debut and sophomore outing didn’t detract from his humility or his focus on winning.
“That was one of my goals to retire undefeated, but now I have one loss on my record,” Rosas told reporters during an open workout media scrum at the UFC Apex. “But I’m going to keep it just like that, one loss on my record. I’m going to go out there and just make every other dream that I have come true.”
“… In my book, I’ve always been humble, just confident. I’m just saying what I think, I’m just preaching it because I know it’s real. I still think the same way. That didn’t change my mentality. The only thing that loss changed was my record and that’s about it.”
Rosas will get his chance to return to the win column Sept. 16 at Noche UFC, where he meets Terrence Mitchell (14-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC). The event celebrates Mexican Independence Day, which will bring Rosas’ heritage to the forefront along with other Mexican fighters set to compete. The young bantamweight feels the event is a solid stage to rebound and continue his path toward becoming a superstar.
“I know I’m ready, so I’m going to go out there Sept. 16, prove why I’m still active because I am who I say I am,” Rosas said. “So, I’m going to go out there and show it to myself.”