MORENO VALLEY, California – There’s a minimalist approach to boxing from the super-flyweight champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.
Perhaps that’s why when Rodriguez was asked what most concerns him about Saturday’s fellow 115lbs champion Fernando “Puma” Martinez, he answered: “Nothing.”
Displaying a throwback attention to detail and a reluctance to boast as his stock rises to the peak of his sport, San Antonio’s 25-year-old Rodriguez, 22-0 (15KOs), looks to add a third 115lbs belt to his collection on the Riyadh Season card on DAZN.
Former flyweight champion Rodriguez has defeated nearly the full collection of super-flyweight champions that preceded him – Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, Carlos Cuadras and Juan Francisco Estrada – and intends to move up in weight to pursue the likes of unbeaten recent bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani and unbeaten undisputed junior-featherweight champion Naoya Inoue.
“By the time he’s done, he’ll be a four-division champion,” said Eduardo Garcia, patriarch of the powerful Garcia boxing family who counts trainer of the year Robert Garcia and four-division champion Mikey Garcia as his sons.
With Rodriguez gone to Saudi Arabia, BoxingScene stopped by the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy on Wednesday to discuss the admiration that the facility’s boxers carry for Rodriguez.
ProBox’s 140lbs contender Carlos Balderas describes Rodriguez as “a different breed.”
“He’s super motivated,” Balderas said. “Every time he comes in him, you don’t see him taking forever to wrap his hands. You don’t see him talking to everybody. He gets to work. He’s been looking good, and you’ll see that Saturday.
“There’s [boxers] known for being brash, outspoken. He barely even talks here in the gym. You’ve got to bring the conversation to him. His skills speak for him. To see how young he is, to see his [advanced] footwork… when the others leave, I see him doing his push-ups and sit-ups. It’s that mindset that separates him from other fighters.”
When asked if he had a message to pass along to Rodriguez, Balderas said he’s so confident Rodriguez will win: “I’m going to bet the house, the car and the dog.”
IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla said his deep respect for Rodriguez is rooted in his work ethic.
“What makes him different is his consistency – he wants it so bad,” said the similarly determined Muratalla. “I don’t see anybody beating him right now. That’s how we are: work in silence, and show them.”
Trainer Garcia is set up in a recliner chair in front of RGBA’s three sparring rings to supervise the talent and consult when needed.
He said Rodriguez is one of the “smartest, most disciplined and best” fighters he has ever witnessed.
“He’s very obedient and likes to follow instructions,” Garcia said. “He’s going to win on Saturday. I see him winning by knockout. He turns when he spins and can throw uppercuts really good. He hits really hard. We believe in ‘Bam’.”
To observe Rodriguez in camp is to reflect on those special ones before him who’ve paid such heavy dues in the gym: Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao, Saul Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin. The extra effort leads to the scintillating showings, where the class of the prepared fighter routinely carries them through to victory.
Leo Rubalcava, a 140lbs fighter working his way up, said he’s paused to study Rodriguez’s habits.
“His hard work, dedication and focus… has made skills, angles that nobody else has,” Rubalcava said. “I see him shadow boxing for a very long time. He always has a rhythm in there that’s unique.”
As Inoue and Nakatani head to a likely 2026 showdown, Rodriguez will seek out IBF super-flyweight champion Willibaldo Garcia of Mexico, upon defeating the 34-year-old Martinez, to gain an undisputed championship.
