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Jerome Rivera, right, is shown fighting Saul Elizondo in a 2017 bout at Isleta Casino. Rivera won that one by TKO, but he has faced some adversity since signing with UFC last September. (Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal File)
Jerome Rivera is 0-3 as a UFC fighter. Going 0-4, he’s aware, could spell the end of his career in MMA’s most powerful organization.
Yet, the Santa Fe native says, that’s not his primary source of motivation as he prepares to face Kazakhstan’s Zhalgas Zhumagolov on Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada.
All he needs for inspiration is to look at his gym bag, where he’s affixed photos of his fiancée, Gabriella Fischer, and their almost 3-year-old daughter Emilia.
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Santa Feâs Jerome Rivera, eager to atone for a loss on Jan. 20, took a fight against Odeâ Osbourne on three daysâ notice and at a weight 20 pounds above his normal division.
Bad idea.
In Las Vegas, Nevada, Rivera lost by first-round knockout to Osbourne Saturday in a featherweight (145-pound) fight on a UFC Fight Night card.
Osbourne (9-3), of Waukesha, Wisconsin, floored Rivera (10-5) with a powerful straight left hand, then, with Rivera on his back, landed several hard shots to the head on the ground. Referee Chris Tognoni stopped the fight at the 26-second mark of the first.
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Santa Fe native Jerome Rivera, right, shown in action during a fight in 2017, has a big fight coming up early Wednesday morning. (Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal File)
Jerome Rivera won the first 11 fights, amateur and pro, of his MMA career. He made it look easy.
Then, things got toughâ three losses in his next six fights, a painful and debilitating injury.
We all know, though, about that sign in the locker room we all saw as kids â the one that told us what to do when the going got tough.
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Wednesday morning (Mountain time) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the Santa Fe flyweight faces his next tough assignment.