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EspañolCormier student Imanol Rodriguez (7-0) made his UFC debut in a flyweight booking against Kevin Borjas (10-5) at UFC Mexico on Saturday at the Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico. The undefeated Rodriguez was a massive -470 favorite going into his UFC debut. But Borjas dropped Rodriguez twice early in the first round, in what appeared to be the makings of a huge upset. However, Rodriguez managed to take Borjas down and survive the first round. Rodriguez repeated his dominance on the mat in the second round before knocking Borjas out with a barrage late in the round. Rodriguez says he recognised that Borjas was tired enough from the grappling to go for the finish.
Huge undefeated favourite Imanol Rodriguez for dropped TWICE in round one, but survived.#UFCMexico
pic.twitter.com/vKKfawwbVE— Verdict (@VerdictMMA) March 1, 2026
The Academy Way
“I knew he was gonna be a tough fight,” Rodriguez told the UFC. “Kevin also really hungry for a victory so I knew he was trying to take my head off. But I was focused and I followed the strategy and thank God I finished with a win… I take down my opponent and when he came up, he came up really tired. So I looked at that and tried to just finish the fight.”
Rodriguez’s interview was interrupted by a congratulatory call from his coach, Daniel Cormier, who told him, “That’s the academy way.” Rodriguez was initially on Cormier’s team on Season 33 of “The Ultimate Fighter” last year, where he was eliminated in the semi-finals. The 26-year-old subsequently started training under “DC” full time and earned his UFC contract with a first-round knockout win on the Dana White's Contender Series last year.
"I feel comfortable. I feel secure about myself."
Imanol Rodriguez discusses his dominant TKO victory in his debut at #UFCMexico, and gets a congratulatory call from Daniel Cormier mid-interview!
Complete Main Card Results ➡️ https://t.co/BpzhaK7mNGpic.twitter.com/6k3bMrBR1T— UFC News (@UFCNews) March 1, 2026