Gregory Rodrigues was stopped by veteran Jared Cannonier in his first UFC main event this past Saturday in Las Vegas, and it turns out that his post-weigh cut recovery wasn’t ideal.
“Robocop” had a great opening round at UFC Vegas 102, dropping Cannonier multiple times in the first five minutes of their middleweight contest, but slowed down after that. Cannonier had him badly hurt in the end of the third round, knocking down the Brazilian with a nasty elbow and scoring the stoppage 21 seconds into the fourth.
Rodrigues, who turned 33 on Monday, issued a statement on social media to address the defeat and cited “several issues” that went on before the bout.
“It’s my birthday today, and even though it was a tough day at work, I’m grateful for everything God has done and continues to do in my life,” Rodrigues wrote. “Big thanks to the UFC team for the opportunity — I’m truly honored to have shared the Octagon with the #7 in the division. Cannonier is a highly experienced fighter who taught me a lot in this fight! I saw several details that can be improved — things that will be changed. Winning Fight of the Night was a gift for two warriors who weren’t afraid to go to battle.
“Most people don’t know this, but I had serious issues to recovery after weight cut — my body just wasn’t responding. I keep wondering how things would’ve played out if I had been at 100%… But no sad stories here — Robocop never dies! Time to recharge, reset the system, and upgrade, ‘cause I’m just getting started!”
Rodrigues had a three-fight winning streak snapped by Cannonier, dropping to 7-3 since joining the UFC in 2021. The former LFA middleweight champion scored five of his seven octagon victories via stoppage.
On the flip side, Cannonier returned to the winning column after consecutive defeats to Nassourdine Imavov and Caio Borralho.
