Teenage prospect Raul Rosas Jr. is the youngest signing in UFC history. The American is scheduled to make his promotional debut against Jay Perrin at UFC 282.
On the pre-fight media day for the event, the 18-year-old detailed what he had in store for his UFC debut.
‘El Nino Problema’ claimed that he was going to show the world that he was cut above the rest of the competition.
The Californian added that he was hoping to fast-track his way to higher levels of competition by securing a dominant win at UFC 282:
“For me, it’s not only winning the fight on Saturday night, it’s about going out there and making a statement. Just to prove a point, I’m ready to face higher-level competition. So I’m just going to show everybody that I’m levels above. So the key to this fight is not only winning this fight but also I’m going to win impressively, to show I’m ready to fight higher level competition.”
Raul Rosas Jr. was signed to the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion as a result of his impressive unanimous decision win against Mando Gutierrez in the Dana White’s Contender Series 2022.
‘El Nino Problema’ currently holds an undefeated pro record of 6 wins. All except for his DWCS win have come via finishes.
Watch Raul Rosas Jr. talk about his UFC debut below:
Jay Perrin sees more hype than substance in Raul Rosas Jr.
During the media day for UFC 282, bantamweight fighter Jay Perrin claimed that his opponent Raul Rosas Jr. was still an unpolished fighter despite the immense hype around the teenager.
Perrin explained that people were so engrossed with the fact that Raul made it to the big leagues at such a young age that they are turning a blind eye to the holes in his game:
“We are at the UFC this is the top of the world.. I think again you’re enamored with how old he is and all the hype around him and not the actual skill set and that’s what I’m looking at… As a complete fighter I dont see him on the same level as I am… He is still and 18-year-old kid that is unpolished and hasn’t been tested even one time… I do think he is very good and he’ll be very good [but] not right now.”
Based on the live odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, the teenage sensation is the -230 moderate favorite to win at UFC 282, while his opponent Jay Perrin is the +195 underdog.
Watch Jay Perrin talk about Rosas Jr. below: