FRISCO, Texas – Worrying about anything beyond the fight in front of you has never been a practice that Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez has cared to embrace.
However, the two-division champion is in the unique position of already having something concrete to look forward to with a win in his next fight.
“My goal has always been to become undisputed,” Rodriguez told BoxingScene. “No matter what my team has planned, I only concentrate on the fight I need to win, to get me to the next one. With these fights presenting themselves, my goal right now is just to take care of business and collect belts one fight at a time.”
As already reported, Rodriguez, 21-0 (14 KOs), is double stuffed with 115lbs unification bouts this year.
Up next for the lineal and WBC king is a clash with WBO titlist Phumelele Cafu, 11-0-3 (8 KOs). DAZN will air their championship affair this Saturday (7:00 p.m. ET/ 12:00 a.m. BST) from The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, just four hours from Rodriguez’s San Antonio hometown.
With a win, the unbeaten 25-year-old is then set for another multi-belt showdown with WBA titlist Fernando Martinez, 18-0 (9 KOs). Their bout is part of a loaded November 22 ‘Ring IV’ card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Long before Rodriguez stamps his passport, the main – if not, only – objective is to not leave any stone unturned with present-day business.
While Rodriguez is a massive favorite to prevail – as high as 30/1 according to DraftKings Sportsbook – he faces an opponent already comfortable fighting on the road.
Cafu claimed the WBO 115lbs title in a massive upset win over four-division titlist Kosei Tanaka last October in Tokyo, Japan. It was his first fight outside of South Africa, and the unbeaten 26-year-old rode a knockdown to the finish line in a split decision victory.
“Cafu is a dangerous opponent,” acknowledged Rodriguez, who is 7-0 in title fights at 112lbs and 115lbs. “He’s coming off that big upset win over Tanaka in Tokyo.
“Mentally, he’s coming very prepared. He trained at full capacity to come here to Texas and do the same thing to me. I’m doing the same thing on my side. I’m just ready to go, ready for anything he’s trying to bring.”
The fight is Rodriguez’s first since a third-round knockout of Pedro Guevara to defend his lineal and WBC 115lbs championship last November 9 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The eight-month gap between fights disrupted the incredible momentum enjoyed in the preceding eleven months. Rodriguez reclaimed the junior bantamweight crown with an off-the-canvas, seventh-round knockout of Juan Francisco Estrada last June 29 in Phoenix, Arizona. That win came six months after his ninth-round stoppage of Sunny Edwards in their December 2023 IBF-WBO flyweight unification clash just outside of Phoenix in Glendale, Arizona.
The good news is that a win on Saturday will return Rodriguez to his preferred cadence. While not looking past Cafu and towards Martinez, there is the comfort in knowing this fight serves a purpose far beyond its immediate stakes.
“This is another steppingstone to where I want to be,” noted Rodriguez. “I’d love to be undisputed or at least collect as many belts as possible before I leave the division.”
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on X and Instagram.
