For an emotional Jordan Rinaldi, first UFC win meant vindication after tough career setbacks

MEXICO CITY – Jordan Rinaldi was clearly thrilled after getting his first UFC win on Saturday. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for him to get to it – both during and before the fight.

Rinaldi (13-5 MMA, 1-1 UFC) overcame some early adversity to use Alvaro Herrera’s (9-5 MMA, 1-2 UFC) own submission attempt against him in route to locking in a rare Von Flue choke. The first-round submission, which opened up UFC Fight Night 114 at Mexico City Arena, got Rinaldi back on the winning path he was riding before a UFC debut loss to Abel Trujillo.

But, more than that, it meant some reassurance for the 29-year-old fighter, who admitted to past doubts about his place in MMA during an emotional post-fight chat backstage.

“I’ve had some real fights and some big setbacks,” Rinaldi told MMAjunkie after the lightweight bout, which streamed live on UFC Fight Pass. “I was distraught a few times when I got knocked out by (James) Moontasri. I got choked out by (Brian) Ortega, I got beat by Ronnie Rogers – who, personally, I think I won.

“But, at that point, after I lost that split decision to (Rogers), I went to the back and bawled my eyes out because I had no idea if this was for me anymore. And it’s just fantastic to finally get that vindication in the cage, in the UFC. I mean, it’s fantastic.”

So what kept him going even when he thought about giving up? Well, in summation, “a whole mass of people.”

“I’ve always had a little bit of a problem with confidence, and the people really rallied around me – my brother, my wife, my team,” Rinaldi said. “They came around and said, ‘You have what it takes. You have the skills. You have the athletic abilities and the drive and everything.'”

It’s been more than three years since the RFA loss to Moontasri. After that, Rinaldo went on a five-fight winning streak that was only stopped by the decision loss to Trujillo at UFC Fight Night 88. Now, not only has he bounced back, but he’s done so impressively – with a submission that had only been seen thrice before in the octagon.

In what turned out to be a finish-filled night, the lightweight ended up not scoring a post-fight bonus for his efforts. But at least he’s guaranteed the bragging rights of getting the job done just like he thought he could.

“I told my team before that he would be a sucker for it,” Rinaldi said. “(That) he would die with the guillotine, because he doesn’t go from that often. But any time someone goes to his hips, he goes immediately to the choke. And he hit me hard, and had me – it didn’t feel good.

“When I got to that leg, and he started wrapping that up, I was like, ‘That’s not tight at all.’ And then I knew he had a terrible weigh cut. So I knew that he wouldn’t be able to hold that long. So I just grit my teeth and I said, ‘Hey, we’re going down with this ship.'”

Now, with his first octagon win under his belt, Rinaldi would like to keep the momentum going with a quick turnaround – preferably one that would allow him to visit (and feast with) his relatives for the first time in half a decade.

“If I can get a fight right before Thanksgiving – that New York card (UFC 217 on Nov. 4),” Rinaldi said. “Maybe stay in New York for a little while, train, and then go up to Connecticut, eat a ton of food. (That would) be fantastic.”

To hear more of Rinaldi’s emotional post-fight interview, check out the video above.

And for complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 114, check out the UFC Events section of the site.