*Vitor
Technically he was Victor Gracie back then anyway.
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That is one ugly motherfucker. One right hand bomb on that chin and heâs toast.
This kid looks like a Mexican Khazmat with a splash of BJ Penn in voice and looks.
I think be may be a version of motivated Penn.
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He reminds me of these guys
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He looked great I think heâll be a star
Indio looking motherfucker.
Somebody fucked his own sister in Mexico about 18 years ago, thatâs for sure.
Raul Rosas Jr.âs life is part of a shared experienced lived by many in the U.S., but within that large part of the population, this 17-year-oldâs story is far from ordinary.
Rosas is one of millions of first-generation immigrants chasing the American dream, looking to make his parents proud but also carrying the sense of responsibility of one day repaying them for what they had to endure as immigrants to give him a better life.
And for Rosas, his dream of a better future comes through professional fighting. âEl Niño Problemaâ dazzled the MMA world last month when he made history by becoming the youngest fighter to ever sign with the UFC following a dominant win over 25-year-old Nando Gutierrez at Dana White Contender Series 55.
âIâve been training and taking it easy, but yeah, my Instagram now has a lot of followers, and Iâve been getting many messages,â Rosas told MMA Junkie in Spanish regarding the aftermath of his historic win. âAlso been doing a lot of interviews and all that, but we knew this was coming, so no problem.â
Despite being just a teenager, itâs been a long road for Rosas to reach this monumental point of his MMA career.
âIâm very grateful for my parentsâ
Raul Rosas Jr. prepares to fight Mando Gutierrez at Dana Whiteâs Contender Series 55 (Photo by Chris Unger, Zuffa LLC)
Rosas was born in November 2004 in Clovis, N.M., a small town with a population of less than 40,000.
Rosasâ parents, Raul Rosas and Oyuki Rios, originally came to the U.S. from Iztapalapa, one of Mexico Cityâs most dangerous and poorest boroughs. Raul Sr. works as a boxing coach, and Oyuki is a housekeeper and also does other part-time jobs on the side as sheâs also focused on looking after Rosas and his brother, Jessie, whoâs also a professional fighter.
Raul Sr. and Oyuki knew that their sons had a knack for combat sports, and they were also aware that just being stateside wasnât going to be enough for their kidsâ desire to become pro fighters. Raul Jr. and Jessie needed something that Clovis, N.M. couldnât offer.
âIâm very grateful for my parents, because we lived in a small town â Clovis, New Mexico,â Raul Jr. said. âAnd we were comfortable. We had everything, and they left it all behind, so we could move forward in life.
âAt Clovis, we reached a point where we couldnât grow in level (in MMA), so we moved to Santa Rosa, California. We left everything â family, everything. And we moved into a tiny apartment. We shared a living room between like five people, and there was a lot of us in the apartment. It was like 12 people. But thanks to my parents and their sacrifice, weâre here. And yeah, we get tired of eating arroz and frijoles, and I told them jokingly, âOnly rib-eye from now on.â
âBut yeah, I want to help out my family to move forward, and so we can continue moving up.â
The move to Santa Rosa came in 2017 when Rosas was just 13. From there, he kept disinclined. He competed in Pankration, which is similar to amateur MMA, and also began high school wrestling. After a few years in Santa Rosa, Rosasâ parents decided to take another step in furthering their sonsâ fighting career.
In late 2021, the Rosas family moved from California to the âFight Capital of the World,â Las Vegas. Rosas set up his training at 10th Planet Las Vegas and Cobrinha Jiu-Jitsu, and at the same time, he began fighting professionally under Ultimate Warrior Challenge in Tijuana, Mexico â just a few hours drive from Las Vegas.
Fast-forward almost a year and five professional wins later, and the opportunity to showcase his skills at DWCS came calling â which was a rare chance. Normally, the Nevada Athletic Commission requires competitors to be 18-38 years of age, but it can grant licenses outside that range upon special approval.
After reviewing his case, the NAC liked what they saw and gave Rosas the green light. He made the most of it by putting on a dominant showing at DWCS 55 and completely outclassed his opponent on the ground â a performance that not only impressed UFC president Dana White but many watching at home.
Prior to the fight, Rosas was more than confident heâd deliver at DWCS and secure a contract with the UFC. He also had no doubt his parentsâ support played a crucial role in taking one step closer to achieving his dream of becoming the youngest champion in UFC history.
âIf it wasnât for them, I would be in a small town in Clovis, New Mexico, because how could I just move out of the town being underage?â Rosas explained. âAnd not just that, the mentality that they always gave us to always move forward â even if we werenât fighters, to go out there and get a degree. So Iâm so thankful for them, because if it wasnât for them, I wouldnât be speaking to you today.â
Not worried about critics
Raul Rosas Jr. reacts after being awarded a UFC contract during Dana Whiteâs Contender Series 55. (Photo by Chris Unger, Zuffa LLC)
Rosas is still in high school and finishing his senior year. He has no plans to go to college for the time being, given how his fighting career has panned out.
While many have celebrated Rosasâ remarkable achievement in becoming the youngest fighter to ever sign with the UFC, others have remained skeptical by his age and perceived lack of experience.
Rosasâ response is that people arenât aware of how much he and his family have sacrificed to get to the UFC, nor how much experience heâs been able to gain despite his young age.
âThatâs OK, whatever they want to say or not say,â Rosas said. âRegardless, Iâm going to win my fights in the UFC and climb up the ladder to the title. You can never please everyone, right?
âYou see Khabib (Nurmagomedov), he retired undefeated, but now people are saying many were debutants when he was fighting them. Jon Jones, you see how they criticize him. So thatâs never ending to tell you the truth, so what can you do about it? I only stick with the people that support me.
âMany people say Iâm too young, but I have a lot of experience that people donât know about. At 12 years of age, I already had experience. Iâm a very experienced fighter, but itâs hard to believe because they say, âHow can a 17-year-old be more experienced than a 25-year-old?â Itâs hard to believe, but that doesnât matter. Iâm going to keep fighting and moving forward.â
Like a little Nate Diaz up in this mug âŠah vetigo!
