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Gregory Rodrigues | 'RoboCop' Ready For The Sequel
Ranked Middleweight Talks Brunno Ferreira, Pressure Ahead Of UFC 326
In the 1987 sci-fi action masterpiece RoboCop, the titular character begins the film as police officer Alex Murphy, a cop looking to do his part to help keep the people of the dystopian Detroit. Spoiler alert, but he gets tortured, shot, and nearly killed before he is rescued and transformed into RoboCop, a cybernetically enhanced member of the Detroit Police Department that ultimately gains a measure of vengeance on the criminal outfit that tried to kill him.
Ahead of his UFC 326 rematch with Bruno Ferreira this weekend at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Gregory Rodrigues is leaning all the way into his “Robocop” nickname.
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“When I lost that night three years ago, that was Murphy fighting, but he created ‘Robocop.’ That’s the change,” he said. “I was a kid at the time… I remember when I fought Chidi Njokuani — that was the fight where I split my head in half — and if you watch it, all my interviews right after that, everybody knew the UFC would come back to Rio de Janeiro. Everybody was asking me if I would fight in Rio and I said, ‘No, I wanna take a break.’ My daughter is born a month after that fight — I fought in September; she was born in October. I should have stayed with what I said — ‘I’m not gonna fight.’
“I was supposed to fight a different guy. (Ferreira) came on short-notice, (and) he knocked me out,” continued Rodrigues, who was initially scheduled to face Brad Tavares.
The middleweight compatriots were tentative with each other out of the gate, wary of the power the other possessed, leading to only a few brief exchanges during the first half of the opening round. As the clocked ticked down into the final minute of the frame, they came together, and Ferreira’s right-hand counter found the mark, sending Rodrigues to the canvas and Ferreira to his first UFC win.
“I hope he enjoyed that night so much because that was probably the best night of his life, and Saturday night is gonna be completely different,” Rodrigues said. “It’s gonna be completely different; trust me. I’m ready for this and I wanted this fight.
Preview Every Matchup At UFC 326
“It’s nothing personal, but it’s good that we have a story; it’s good for the fans, it’s good for the UFC,” continued the 34-year-old, who enters on a 2-fight winning streak. “We’re completely different guys, we’re gonna fight each other again, but it’s gonna be a new fight, and all the pressure is on him.”
Pressure is one of those inescapable elements of the sport that we talk about all the time, and while it is often dismissed, the reality is there is no escaping it. The key is learning to live with it and make it work for you.
Gregory Rodrigues Fight Week Interview | UFC 326
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Gregory Rodrigues Fight Week Interview | UFC 326
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Few people have ever expressed this idea in a more clear and impactful manner than Rodrigues.
“The pressure is gonna come no matter what, but it’s welcomed,” he said. “Pressure in control is power. When people don’t want the pressure, it’s pressure… We were made to be under pressure, and that’s powerful. I love the pressure, man, because I know I did everything I needed to be ready for this. I’m ready for this so what more do I need to do?
“It’s the same when you’re in school,” he added. “If you didn’t study for your test, then you (are) probably gonna run away from the pressure, but when you study, the pressure’s gonna come, but I’m OK. I know all the answers and just need the time.”
A lot of Rodrigues’ being comfortable with the pressure has been cultivated over the last year, which began with an important lesson and wrapped with a pair of impressive wins.
Entering 2025 on a 3-fight winning streak that included a stoppage of Tavares and a decision win over Christian Leroy Duncan in Manchester, Rodrigues was paired off with Jared Cannonier in February in the first UFC main event of his career. He took the fight to the former title challenger straight away, winning the opening round on all three scorecards.
But as the fight progressed, Rodrigues ceded ground to the resilient and steady Cannonier, who won the next two frames before securing a finish 21 seconds into the fourth round.
MORE UFC 326: Oliveira Fight Week Interview | De Ridder Is Straight To The Point | Fighters On The Rise | Co-Main Event Spotlight
“The main event last year against Jared Cannonier was a gamechanger for me as a fighter — how much I learned about patience, about who I am, about what I can do, how I can fight better, improve myself, and how to put it all together inside the Octagon,” he said. “I think the biggest lesson was about patience and enjoying being inside the Octagon more. You need to want (to be in there for the whole fight). If it’s 15 minutes, 25 minutes, you need to want this.
“I remember after the first round, I just wanted to try to finish the fight and get out,” admitted Rodrigues. “He was so resilient and broke me. He was patient, didn’t change. After the fight, he said he was broken, but ‘Inside, I knew I needed to be dangerous.’ From my side, that wasn’t the fight I was seeing. I was see the same guy since the beginning, punching and kicking him, and he didn’t change.”
Rodrigues laughed at the recollection, acknowledging that coming away from that fight prompted him to reset and shift his perspective.
The early finish came in his next fight, a brutal first-round knockout win over Jack Hermansson at UFC 317 that earned him a Performance of the Night bonus and got things moving in the right direction again.
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Now, he’s set to kick off the main card at UFC in a rematch he’s always wanted, on a card with several teammates and headlined by compatriot Charles Oliveira and icon Max Holloway.
“Bro — what am I gonna ask more for?” he said, smiling. “I’m just gonna go in there and enjoy. I’ll do my part, I’m part of the show, and I’ll put on a show for the fans and everybody. I can’t ask for better.”
You won’t hear an argument to the contrary from me.
UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2 took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 7, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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