Prior to his knockout win over Pedro Guevara, pint-sized puncher ‘Bam’ spoke to Rob Tebbutt…
JESSE RODRIGUEZ has established himself as one of the best fighters on the planet.
The 24-year-old has been tearing through the lower weights since capturing his first world title back in February 2022 and, with a destructive seventh round stoppage win over Mexican legend Juan Francisco Estrada back in May, the meteoric rise of ‘Bam’ shows little sign of slowing.
“Yeah. I mean, it was a great fight. I feel like that was my best performance to date,” Rodriguez told Boxing News.
“Especially with an opponent like Estrada. He’s a legend in all of boxing, so to handle him the way I did, it shows a lot about who I am.
“It [the Estrada fight] was a little bit different, just because it was his territory, being in Phoenix, but I handled that well as well. So, like I said, it just goes to show not only as a fighter, but as a person, that’s who I am.”
The bout against Estrada would afford Rodriguez the opportunity to showcase a side of his game that, so far, hadn’t been required: his mettle.
Billed as a ‘Passing of The Torch’ between generations old and new, the action itself would live up to lofty pre-fight expectations. Estrada was knocked down in the fourth, before returning the favour in the sixth; sending Rodriguez to the canvas for the first time in his career, courtesy of a sharp right hand.
“Yeah. I mean, it was a learning experience,” Rodriguez grins.
“Now that I’m looking back at it, I should have listened to my coaches. They told me not to get too comfortable: that’s what I did. That’s why I ended up on the canvas. I just need to learn the lesson, to pay attention, to not get lazy, and just to listen to my coach at all times.”
The lesson was learned. Quickly. After steadying the ship in the sixth, Rodriguez would finish the round on top, before a crunching left-uppercut to the mid-section in the remaining seconds of the seventh saw Estrada dropped once more. This time, the referee would reach a count of 10 while ‘El Gallo’ lay flat on his back, writhing in agony while Rodriguez rejoiced.
Estrada, a proud champion stopped for the first time in a storied 48-fight career, would quickly signal his intention to invoke his contracted rematch clause. He had, of course, been the first to knock Rodriguez down and, for parts of the fight at least, was as competitive as anyone has been with ‘Bam’.
A rematch, however, would fail to materialise; with Estrada choosing to go in a different direction as he approaches the end of his Hall of Fame-worthy career. Who could blame him? Especially when revisiting the sickening impact of the body-shot that would put a juddering halt to his reign as champion.
“Oh, yeah, that’s what we were expecting [the immediate rematch] right after the fight.
“It was in the contract already to have a rematch. So, I mean, we waited like two months just to find out that he pulled out, and that’s why we ended up here fighting Pedro Guevara [in Philadelphia on November 9]. But, I mean, it is what it is. That’s his decision. I gotta respect at the end of the day.”
Estrada’s withdrawal sees Rodriguez face Mexican Guevara who, while coming off of a career-best win himself over Australia’s Andrew Moloney last time out, is a far cry from the top-level opposition that has brought out the best in Rodriguez thus far.
Nevertheless, ‘Bam’ remains focused on replicating his stellar showings against some of the sport’s marquee names, albeit in a fight he will enter as an overwhelming favourite. The only question for most being how emphatically Rodriguez will dispose of Guevara, a defeat simply unimaginable.
“I feel like, to other people, this is a showcase fight, but to me, it’s just as dangerous as my past two fights. I’m on the pound-for-pound list now, so I gotta go out there and improve on it.
“I don’t want to try too hard to look impressive. I’ve just got to go out there and take it just as any other fight. In my past two fights, the way I performed is the way I’ve got to perform November 9. Come fight night, I’ll be ready to take what I learned from those fights and I’ll be more ready, mentally and physically.”
Rodriguez’s return will also see him form one-half of a tantalising new ‘double-act’ alongside IBF welterweight champion and promotional stable-mate Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. The duo, both signed to Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, are widely considered to be two future superstars of American and, indeed, world boxing.
With the card taking place at the 21,000 capacity Wells Fargo Center in Ennis’ home city of Philadelphia, Rodriguez himself is excited for the opportunity to showcase his talents to a new audience, this time on America’s east coast. To do so alongside another fighter of Ennis’ calibre is another welcome bonus.
“This is a huge opportunity for me, not only to fight on a huge card, but to expose my fighting style to the East Coast.
“I haven’t fought on the East Coast ever, not even as an amateur. It’s an opportunity to expose my skills, my career, and to share it with ‘Boots’ – one of the best in all of boxing – it’s an honour.”
The pairing of two of boxing’s top tier talents has been largely well-received by boxing fans, with ‘Boots/Bam’ joining ‘GGG/Chocolatito’ and, more recently, ‘Benavidez/Tank’ as a rare opportunity to see two star-fighters seemingly content in sharing the spotlight.
The fact cannot be escaped, however, that both Ennis and Rodriguez enter their respective bouts as sizeable favourites. While Ennis has so far struggled to secure fights with the biggest names at welterweight, Rodriguez already boasts a slew of top-notch victories in his relatively short career at the highest level.
With dominant victories over three of the consensus ‘Four Kings’ at super-flyweight in Carlos Cuadras, Srisaket Sor Rungvisai and the aforementioned Estrada, there remains one name that has thus far eluded Rodriguez’s grasp: the great Nicaraguan Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez.
Previously, a bout with Gonzalez had been thought to have been a non-starter, due to the wishes of Teiken Promotions powerhouse Akihiko Honda who promotes both Rodriguez (alongside Matchroom Boxing) and Chocolatito.
However, recent reports suggested the fantasy match-up could be back on the table, potentially in 2025 in Saudi Arabia. While ‘Bam’ was quick to quash the stories as ‘fake news’, he refused to rule out a future fight with the legendary four-weight world champion.
“Yeah, I mean, it was kind of fake news. Robert [Garcia] cleared that up on Twitter. He said, If the unification fights don’t come after this one [Guevara], then it’s a fight that we would be interested in if he [Gonzalez] is with it too.
“So, if it happens, it happens. If not, there’s other fighters that I want to fight.”
The emergence of Rodriguez as an elite level operator has run parallel with another rise to-power in boxing.
Turki Alalshikh, the head of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, has quickly established himself as a key figure in the sport with the introduction of Saudi’s Riyadh Season events. With rumours swirling regarding Rodriguez appearing on a Riyadh Season card in the near future, it is an option that not only appeals to the San Antonio-native, but is already laid out in the terms of his contract.
“I signed a new deal with Matchroom, and [fighting in] Saudi Arabia is actually in the contract,” Rodriguez confirmed to BN. “If I do fight out there, they have my purse ready. That’s another place I would love to fight.”
With Saudi Arabia already playing host to two undisputed title fights in Fury vs Usyk and Beterbiev vs Bivol in 2024 alone, Rodriguez is hopeful that the riches on offer by Alalshikh and GEA could see him land his own opportunity to unify all four belts in the 115lbs division.
“I feel like if it were up to me, I would fight [WBA and IBF champion Fernando Daniel] Martinez out there [in Saudi], go for undisputed. That’d be a great fight.”
Whether the future includes a trip to Saudi, San Antonio or somewhere in between, Rodriguez, at only 24-years-old, has already cemented himself as one of the hottest talents of a generation.
The desert may well be the best place for him.
