Andre Lima a more difficult rival than Ronaldo Rodriguez

Daniel Barez tried to pick a fight with Ronaldo Rodriguez, but instead got unbeaten prospect Andre Lima.

Barez (17-6 MMA, 1-1 UFC) and Lima (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) are set to clash this Saturday at UFC Fight Night 254 (ESPN+), which is set to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The Spanish fighter thought he was a good matchup for “Lazy Boy” and doesn’t know why Rodriguez ended up drawing Kevin Borjas instead of him for the UFC’s return to Mexico City at the end of the month.

“I wasn’t told anything,” Barez told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “I kept sharing stuff on my social media in terms of wanting that fight, but it didn’t happen. I took a shot to see if it would land, but that doesn’t depend solely on me. And like I’ve always said, whoever they put on the contract, I’m signing because I want to be here, and I want to fight against the best, and I just want to fight people who are ahead of me.”

Although Barez didn’t get what he wanted, he is pretty happy with his matchup against Lima. He thinks it’s a more difficult fight, but one that could further his standing in the UFC flyweight division a lot.

“On paper, yeah (it’s more difficult),” Barez said. “On paper, I’d even say it’s more complicated than the Victor Altamirano one. So yeah, this might be too on paper. However, sometimes a style doesn’t go well with another one.

“Altamirano was maybe not too difficult, and this one might be even easier or maybe even a lot harder. We won’t know until the fight happens. But on paper, yeah, it’s more difficult.”

Barez is determined to get his hand raised and get build off his decision win over Victor Altamirano last September. He also thinks the matchup lends itself for a $50,000 Fight Night bonus.

“I think it’s going to be a hard fight, but I see myself finishing the fight before the third round to not leave the fight on the hands of the judges,” Barez said. “I also see myself, or both of us, winning a bonus because we’re both good strikers with a lot of tools.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 254.