UFC's Daniel Rodriguez opens up after Mexican prison stay

Daniel Rodriguez intended to celebrate his latest UFC victory under far better circumstances, but what began as a short weekend trip instead turned into an eight-month ordeal in a Mexican prison, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

After struggling through a three-fight losing streak between 2022 and 2024, the welterweight veteran bounced back impressively with three consecutive wins, the last of which came against Kevin Holland at UFC 318 last July. Following that victory, Rodriguez largely disappeared from the public eye, leaving the MMA community wondering about his whereabouts.

Last week, Rodriguez finally explained the situation publicly, revealing on social media that he had been incarcerated in a prison in Tijuana, Mexico.

Speaking on Monday on Ariel Helwani’s show, The Ariel Helwani Show, Rodriguez detailed how the situation unfolded. He said that roughly two weeks after his win over Holland, he traveled to Mexico for a vacation with a friend, but things quickly went wrong at the border.

Rodriguez explained that he was stopped during border control and found to be carrying a small amount of marijuana—less than an ounce. He said the substance was discovered during inspection, which led to his arrest.

He said he initially believed the situation would be resolved quickly, expecting to spend only a short time in custody, possibly just a weekend or even less. However, he added that Mexico’s legal system and regulations are much stricter than he anticipated, and what he thought would be a brief detention ultimately turned into an eight-month imprisonment.

Rodriguez emphasized that the experience came at a crucial point in his fighting career, describing it as happening during the peak of his professional momentum after his recent UFC resurgence.

Reflecting on the experience, he said it was his first time being held in a Mexican jail and described it as an extremely difficult and harsh situation, calling it the worst experience of his life.

Rodriguez recalled getting a gut feeling before approaching the border. Despite considering tossing the bag ahead of time, he didn't listen, and it cost him more than the value of what was on his person.

According to Rodriguez, the car he was driving didn't have any tags on his front license plate, which prompted border control to conduct a search. Rodriguez's friend was also arrested and put in prison for eight months.

"Usually, there's opportunities to get yourself out of certain situations over there in Mexico," Rodriguez said. "I was hoping for that. I had a wallet full of cash with me at the time, and I tried to see if I could catch a break. I tried to see if they could help me out. It wasn't the police — it was actually the border patrol, the National Guard. They don't play no games. I didn't realize that they take it so seriously, and potentially, they hit me with a smuggling charge. So over there, I guess that's a really big deal. And I tried to offer some money to get me out right there on the spot, but they weren't going for it, man.

"They tried to make an example out of me. I was trying to keep a low profile, trying not to let them know who I am and who I was. And it didn't work out — it didn't work out the way I wanted it to, man.

"It was the most horrible situation you can think of."

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev