TAMPA, Fla. – Piera Rodriguez knew the stakes at UFC on ESPN 63.
Following her win over Josefine Knutsson on Saturday, Rodriguez (10-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) admitted she felt the pressure of two consecutive losses and what a third could mean.
“I’m very happy,” Rodriguez told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “I think I worked so hard to get a win tonight. The people have no idea how much I pushed myself to the limit. I think they saw ‘La Fiera’ tonight, and that’s important to me.”
“… I was very aware of that. No one in the UFC wants to get three losses in a row. We know it’s not a good time if you get three losses, so I pushed myself very hard to get a win tonight. But at the end of the day, at the end of the camp, I chose to leave everything to go because I did everything I could. I put it in the hands of God and let him do the work.”
Venezuela’s Rodriguez, 32, kicked off her UFC career with back-to-back wins over Kay Hansen and Sam Hughes. She then dropped consecutive fights to Gillian Robertson (by submission) and Ariane Carnelossi (by disqualification).
Back in the win column, Rodriguez thinks the road to a UFC title has restarted. She wants a top-10 opponent next.
“There’s no specific time or opponent, but I want to get into the top ranking,” Rodriguez said. “I want a top-10 opponent for my next fight. I think I proved many times that I’m tough enough and that I can bring the fire to the division. I can bring the fire to the belt. It’s just a matter of time and I’m ready to take whatever opportunity they give me.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 63.
