Rivalries: Daniel Rodriguez

The ice that Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight Daniel Rodriguez stands on appears to have become dangerously thin.

“D-Rod” will be looking for his first win in more than two years when he takes on Fortis MMA’s Alex Morono in a UFC Fight Night 244 special this Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The 37-year-old Rodriguez enters the cage on the worst three-fight losing streak of his career. He most recently competed in UFC on ABC 6, where he lost a unanimous three-round decision to Kevin Gastelum, winner of Season 17 of The Ultimate Fighter, on June 22.

As Rodriguez approaches his upcoming showdown with Morono at 170 pounds, we take a look at some of the rivalries that have defined his career to this point:

Rodriguez shined in his Octagon debut, knocking out the former King of the Cage champion in the second round of the UFC Fight Night 167 preliminary round on February 15, 2020 at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Means suffered a defeat at 3:37 in Round 2. As a short-term replacement for Ramazan Emeev, Rodriguez couldn't have made a better first impression. He made up for Means with a standup change and turned in a competitive first round, knocking down “The Dirty Bird” on the horn. Rodriguez again staggered his opponent with punches in the middle stanza, pushed him backwards and pressed for an opportunistic guillotine while still standing.

Buoyed by his commitment to leg, body and head strikes, the former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder earned a unanimous decision over Rodriguez as part of the UFC 255 undercard on November 21, 2020 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three cageside referees scored for Dalby: 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28. Rodriguez, a late substitute for Orion Cosce, struggled to find a pace and range he was comfortable with. He was most effective when pushing Dalby backwards and launching powerful strikes, but he often attacked from the outside and gave the Rumble Sports standout too much freedom of movement. Dalby continued his attack with kicks at all levels and survived a dangerous collision late in the third round when Rodriguez appeared to stun him with an overhand left. The loss was Rodriguez's first in nearly three years.

A persistent jab, occasional counters and sustained performance led Rodriguez to a controversial split decision over the China Top Team product in their UFC 279 catchweight showcase on September 10, 2022 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. All three cageside judges had a score of 29-28: Michael Bell and Douglas Crosby for Rodriguez, Ron McCarthy for Li. Each round was closely contested. Operating in the shadow of headliner Nate Diaz-Tony Ferguson, Rodriguez focused his attention on the head, setting up intermittent combinations with the jab. Li focused on the body and legs with heavy kicks while incorporating sporadic crosses and overhand strikes at the top. He slowed down in the third round, where Rodriguez continued to throw his jab, sometimes two or three at a time. When it was over, he had overtaken Li in significant strokes by an 88-78 margin.

The Elevation Fight Team mainstay passed the great Georges St. Pierre for the most wins in welterweight class history when he defeated Rodriguez with a Brabo Choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 214 co-main event on November 5, 2022 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Magny drew the curtain at 3:33 of Round 3. Rodriguez forced the Season 16 semifinalist of “The Ultimate Fighter” out of his comfort zone for much of the fight. He was particularly effective at the end of the first round and in the second, where he fired his jab and forced Magny backwards with stinging left hands. Rodriguez overwhelmed the Brooklyn, New York native with another left attack in round 3, but allowed him to duck into a takedown. After returning to the mat, Magny applied the choke as his opponent tried to get back to his feet. Rodriguez exhausted all options to free himself – without success. The defeat ended a four-fight winning streak for the Californian and began his worrying downward trend in the 170-pound weight class.