Wrestle World - Christian Rodriguez expects experience to play factor vs. debuting Austin Bashi at UFC Fight Night 249

LAS VEGAS – Christian Rodriguez is no stranger to derailing hype trains.

Rodriguez (11-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) welcomes Austin Bashi (13-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) to the octagon on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 249 (ESPN+) main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Rodriguez was the first to beat highly touted Raul Rosas Jr., and he’ll look to do the same against one of the newest additions to the featherweight roster.

“Experience is something definitely you can’t buy, you have to literally experience it,” Rodriguez told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 249 news conference. “I even witnessed that myself in my last fight. It’s the experience. Experience matters a lot in this game. Looking back at my last fight, (Julian) Erosa, he’s a veteran in the game.

“You can’t make a single mistake in that game. You can be winning the fight, but if you make one single mistake, let’s say you take a little mental rest in the game, there’s a punishment for it, and that’s what I learned. I learned how to be dialed in for 15 minutes straight no matter what. I think when you’re so new in this game, when you’re new and it’s always been one-sided, you’re always willing to take a risk, and sometimes you can’t take a risk.”

After missing weight in back-to-back wins against bantamweight prospects Cameron Saaiman and Rosas Jr., Rodriguez moved up to 145 pounds – and he plans on staying there.

“Featherweight’s my permanent home,” Rodriguez said. “I like how I feel at featherweight, and it’s my home for now. The times I’ve made bantamweight, after rehydrating up, I’d get up to like (1)65, ’66 (pounds), and that’s like fight day. So yeah, a good 30 pounds, and I’m already kind of lean, too. And I’m only getting older too so, I’m going to fill out naturally. I’m going to get stronger.”