UFC Star Raúl Rosas Jr. joins the show to preview UFC 306 Noche at the Sphere in Las Vegas this Saturday night. He explains how even as a kid he was ready to fight adults.
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00:00We got UFC three Oh six coming up and that is going our way, uh, this Saturday live on
00:08pay-per-view.
00:09We have one of the young sensations of the UFC and up and coming star 19 years old.
00:15And he is Raul Rosas jr.
00:17Joining us here on the program.
00:19He is fighting coming up.
00:20What's going on, Raul?
00:21How are you, buddy?
00:22I'm good.
00:23And you?
00:24I'm good, buddy.
00:25I'm good.
00:26How is, uh, how has this whole experience been this fight week?
00:27I mean, this looks crazy.
00:29They're pulling out all the stops for this, uh, for this monster fight of the sphere.
00:33Yeah.
00:34Uh, a lot of special things, uh, so I'm excited.
00:39What is, uh, what is, uh, what's, what are the circumstances around fight week?
00:42It's like, are they, there's a lot of fanfare this week.
00:45What, what are they doing in Vegas?
00:47Uh, who just like the UFC, like, is it like, you see the fans going crazy?
00:53Oh, I haven't bumped into, uh, any like people at all.
00:59Cause it's been all at the apex.
01:01So, uh, uh, but yeah, they will have ceremonial weigh-ins and press conference later this
01:07week.
01:08So that's what I'm going to see more of that.
01:10Have you been to the sphere yet?
01:11Have you actually gone there?
01:13Have you, have you done anything near any, you know, media or anything like that?
01:17No.
01:18No.
01:19Getting ready to go out.
01:20Are you excited about it though?
01:21It seems like it's going to be a hell of a, like they got all the pulling out all the
01:23stops for it.
01:24Yeah.
01:25I'm excited for, for all of it and I'm just enjoying this week.
01:28Well, you, I mean, it's crazy to think of all the success, a UFC star, you entered it
01:33like right as you turned 18, you know, we saw you, uh, you know, down here in Miami
01:38and you turned around from that, you gotten two big wins already, um, going into this
01:44promotion at such a young age, like, has it, has it been everything you've dreamed of already
01:48so far, or has it been harder than you thought it was going to be?
01:52How has it lived up to your expectations making the UFC at such a damn young age?
01:58No, everything has been, uh, uh, obviously that loss wasn't what I visualized, but everything
02:03else has gone exactly like how I imagined it.
02:07So I'm just thankful and blessed to be where I am today.
02:11You took that though, and you won so impressively the next two times around.
02:15So like, how did you take that and what did you learn from that to, to be so successful?
02:21Like right off the bat, like, did you find it beneficial in any way or was it just, uh,
02:25did it just frustrate you?
02:26Um, no, I found it beneficial, like, uh, uh, my, you know, when I lost, well, I can't do
02:34nothing anymore.
02:35The only thing I was able to do is learn and grow from it and try to not make those mistakes
02:41again.
02:42So, uh, I learned so many mistakes that I did in that fight, uh, before and after like
02:49leading up to the fight in the camp.
02:51So I went and fixed every single detail and that's why I feel like I am the fighter that
02:56I am today.
02:58For your standpoint, you're 18 years old.
03:00You make the UFC, which is pretty nuts.
03:03You know, you're, you're not even 20 yet.
03:06At what age were you putting people in rear naked chokeholds?
03:09Because my son's eight years old and he's already sneaking up on me and he's already
03:12like thrown.
03:13So like at what age were you already kicking people's ass?
03:15Was it, was it five?
03:16Was it in diapers?
03:17At what point were you already a monster?
03:20I started training when I was four, but when I started like really, really getting good
03:24at it where I could go with, uh, uh, some adults, uh, it was probably like when I was
03:3010 years old, I was able to start choking the adults out.
03:33So that's when I started getting good at it.
03:40Oh my goodness.
03:41That's just terrifying.
03:4210 years old, you're choking adults out?
03:45Yeah.
03:46Yeah.
03:47Yeah.
03:48And then it was pretty even because, uh, uh, I had like some experience already, so I knew
03:53what I was doing.
03:54And then they were like almost brand new, but you know, the strength is, it was way
04:00different.
04:01So I felt like it was kind of fair, you know?
04:03Of course.
04:04Yeah.
04:05Well, I would like, at what point when you're doing this, are you too good to go with kids
04:09your age?
04:10Like at what point did that happen when they're like, no, no, no, no, no.
04:13Raul's too good for this.
04:14We can't have him rolling with the other 10 year olds or the nine year olds.
04:17He he's, he's destroying all of them.
04:19Um, I came from a small town, so there was never a kids class out.
04:23We always, I just had my brothers that were like close in age and, uh, same size.
04:30But since I was like, uh, 13, no 12, 13 years old, uh, I started lying in the Naga tournament
04:38saying I was 18 years old and stuff, because, uh, since you have to pay for, to compete,
04:45I told my parents that, uh, if I was going to pay a hundred dollars to compete, I wanted
04:49it to be competitive.
04:51And so I was going into the dual expert divisions and I was, I was doing pretty good.
04:56Oh my God.
04:58So like, so 18, you're going to like, what, what is the first like age in a real competition?
05:03Like what was the age of the person you're going up against as a teenager?
05:06Uh, as a teenager, I think I was like 13 years old.
05:12And then, um, it was the first time that, uh, I went, there was no kids at the tournament.
05:17So they put me at one 55 with a purple belt.
05:21He was like around 30 years old.
05:23And then I was able to go out there and, and beat him.
05:26So then after that, I was like, oh fuck, I'm just going to stay competing with these adults.
05:32Oh my God.
05:33Um, so you ruined that guy's probably hobby at jujitsu.
05:37Like he, if he's losing, I understand you're going to maybe be champion of the world one
05:41day, but you, you, uh, you Pete, a 30 year old, he's probably like, well, if I lost to
05:46a child, I probably, I understand you told him he was 18.
05:52So he thought you were 18, but I think he knew, or he could see that I was young or
05:57something because when I beat him, we were supposed to only go once.
06:01And then, uh, he was, uh, uh, like talking shit to the rep, like, I don't know about
06:08the match.
06:09He was complaining too much.
06:10And then my dad say, uh, my dad was like, all right, bro, just shut up.
06:13Let's run it back.
06:14So we went back on the mat, did another 10 minutes and then I smoked them even worse.
06:20So then after that, it was just like, I'll sit in bed.
06:24The damage was done.
06:25Run it back.
06:26Well, we can't wait to see an action this weekend, man.
06:29Go by UFC 306, Noche UFC, uh, it's been a, it's been a pleasure, man.
06:35Thanks for the time.
06:36And we'll talk to you again down the line.