Jesse Rodriguez

Jesse James Rodriguez Franco (born January 20, 2000) is an American professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in two weight classes, including the unified World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC), World Boxing Organization (WBO), and Ring magazine super flyweight titles since November 2025. He previously held the WBC super flyweight title in 2022 and the unified International Boxing Federation (IBF) and WBO flyweight titles from 2023 to 2024.

In February 2022, after moving up two weight classes, Rodriguez won the WBC super flyweight title by defeating Carlos Cuadras, becoming the youngest world champion at that time, and the first fighter born in the 2000s to claim a world title. He defended the belt twice before moving down to flyweight and unifying the WBO and IBF titles in 2023. In June 2024, he made his return to the super flyweight division by defeating Juan Francisco Estrada to recapture the WBC super flyweight title and claim the Ring magazine belt. In July 2025, Rodriguez defeated Phumelele Cafu by TKO in the tenth round to secure the WBO super flyweight title, unifying belts in a second weight class, and later added the WBA title by knocking out Fernando Martínez.

Early life

Rodriguez was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. His parents are Jesse Rodriguez and Maria Franco, and he is the youngest of four brothers. During his youth, he had an interest in skateboarding and also played football. At nine years old, he accompanied his older brother Joshua Franco to the San Fernando Boxing Club for a couple of weeks to watch him train, before giving it a try himself. It eventually led him to drop out of the seventh grade and switch to homeschooling to focus more fully on boxing.

During his early years, Rodriguez trained under local coach Martin Barrios, father of WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios. He met his future trainer Robert Garcia in 2012 at an open workout in San Antonio with Nonito Donaire, his favorite fighter at the time.

Amateur career

A successful amateur boxer, Rodriguez won the Region 6 Silver Gloves Championships in North Little Rock, Arkansas, in the 75-pound division just before his 13th birthday on January 12, 2013. He went on to win back-to-back National PAL Championships in 2013 and 2014. He also captured back-to-back U.S. Junior National Championships—at pinweight in 2015 and light flyweight in 2016—and was honored with the Outstanding Junior Male Boxer of the Tournament award. Later in 2016, Rodriguez won the U.S. Junior Olympic National Championships, again at light flyweight.

At the international level, Rodriguez won the silver medal at the 2015 Junior World Championships, losing in the final to Cosmin Gîrleanu.

Professional career

Early career

Rodríguez made his professional debut against Mauricio Cruz on March 10, 2017, after being discovered by Danny Rangel, winning by unanimous decision. By the end of 2019, Rodríguez amassed a 10–0 record, with six of those victories coming by way of stoppage.

Rodríguez was scheduled to face Marco Sustaita on February 29, 2020, on the undercard of the Mikey Garcia versus Jessie Vargas bout. Rodríguez won the fight by eighth-round technical knockout. Rodríguez was next scheduled to face the one-time WBC light flyweight title challenger Janiel Rivera on September 5, 2020. He won the fight by a first-round knockout, managing to drop Rivera three times by the 2 minute mark of the opening round. Rodríguez was scheduled to fight Saul Juarez on December 12, 2020, on the undercard of the Shakur Stevenson and Toka Kahn Clary junior lightweight bout. Rodríguez lived up to his role as the significant betting favorite, knocking Juarez out in the second.

Rodríguez was expected to challenge the reigning WBA (Regular) champion Esteban Bermudez in late 2021, however the fight was later cancelled as it didn't receive approval from the WBA. Rodríguez was instead scheduled to face Jose Alejandro Burgos on October 16, 2021, whom he beat by a fourth-round knockout.

Super flyweight

Rodriguez vs. Cuadras

Rodriguez was expected to face Fernando Diaz for the WBC USNBC flyweight title on February 5, 2022, on the undercard of the vacant WBC super-flyweight title bout between Srisaket Sor Rungvisai and Carlos Cuadras. Soon after this fight was revealed, it was announced that Rodriguez had signed a promotional deal with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing. On January 31, it was announced that Rodriguez would be fighting 34 year old veteran Cuadras for the vacant title, as Rungvisai had withdrawn. For the fight, Cuadras was coming off a loss and 15 months of inactivity. Rodriguez won the fight by unanimous decision. Two judges scored the fight 117–110 for him, while the third judge scored the bout 115–112 in his favor. He scored the sole knockdown of the fight in the third round, flooring Cuadras with a right uppercut. Winning the title made Rodriguez the youngest active titlist in the sport.

Rodriguez vs. Sor Rungvisai

Rodriguez was scheduled to make his first title defense against 35 year old veteran, former super flyweight titlist Srisaket Sor Rungvisai on June 25, 2022. This was Rungvisai's first fight after 16 month layoff. The title bout was booked as the main event of a DAZN broadcast card, which took place at the Tech Port Arena in San Antonio, Texas. Rodriguez won the fight by an eight-round technical knockout, stopping Sor Rungvisai with a flurry of punches at the 1:50 minute mark. He knocked his opponent down once prior to the stoppage, dropping Sor Rungvisai with a left hook a minute into the seventh round. Rodriguez outlanded Sor Rungvisai in both total punches landed (233 to 84) and power punches landed (119 to 72). Following this victory, Rodriguez extended his contract with Matchroom Boxing.

Rodriguez vs. González

Rodriguez made his second title defense against the three-time super flyweight world title challenger, and the #10 ranked WBC contender, Israel González. The fight was scheduled as the co-headliner of the Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin III DAZN pay per view, which took place at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada on September 17, 2022. Rodriguez retained his title by unanimous decision, with scores of 118–109, 117–110 and 114–113. He was deducted a point in the eight round for landing a low blow, which left González on the canvas. González was dropped with a low blow in the eleventh round as well, although no point was deducted.

On October 26, 2022, it was announced by the WBC that Rodriguez had vacated the super flyweight title in order to compete at flyweight.

Flyweight

Rodriguez vs. Gonzalez

On October 28, 2022, the WBO ratings committee approved a request for Rodriguez to be ranked as the top contender at flyweight and immediately challenge for the title. As Junto Nakatani vacated the belt in order to move up to super flyweight, the sanctioning body ordered a vacant title bout between Rodriguez and Cristian Gonzalez, their #2 ranked flyweight contender. The fight was booked to take place on April 8, 2023, at the Boeing Center at Techport in San Antonio, Texas. Rodriguez won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 116–112, 117–111 and 118–110, to once again become the youngest active titlist in the sport. He revealed, in the post-fight interview, that he had suffered a broken jaw in the sixth round. It was confirmed the following day that Rodriguez would have to undergo surgery to heal the injury.

Rodriguez vs. Edwards

Rodriguez faced the four-time defending IBF flyweight champion Sunny Edwards in the main event of a DAZN broadcast show on December 16, 2023, at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. He unified the titles by a ninth-round stoppage, as Edwards retired from the contest at the end of the round. Rodriguez was able to knock his opponent down once in the ninth round, dropping Edwards for the third time in his professional career. Rodriguez outlanded Edwards 238 to 138 in total punches and 180 to 75 in power punches, successfully landing 62% of his power shots. Afterwards, Edwards revealed he had suffered a fractured orbital bone earlier in the fight, causing him to see double.

Return to super flyweight

Rodriguez vs. Estrada

It was reported on March 19, 2024, that Rodriguez was in negotiations with 34 year old veteran and WBC super flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada. On March 28, 2024, the fight was officially announced. The fight was scheduled to take place at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona on June 29, 2024. This was Estrada's first fight in 18 months. Despite suffering the first knockdown of his professional career in the 6th round, Rodriguez won the fight by a seventh round knockout. He dropped Estrada once in the fourth round, before a second and final knockdown in the seventh round by body shot, whereupon the fight was stopped as Estrada was counted out. The three official judges were split on their scorecards at the time of the stoppage: one had the Rodriguez up 58–54, the second judge had Estrada up 57–56, while the third judge saw the fight as a 56–56 draw.

Rodriguez vs. Guevara

Rodriguez was scheduled to defend WBC super flyweight title against 35 year old veteran, former light flyweight champion Pedro Guevara on November 9, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Rodriguez won the fight by TKO in the third round.

Rodriguez vs. Cafu, Martinez

Holding the WBC super flyweight title, Rodriguez defeated WBO super flyweight champion Phumelele Cafu by TKO in the 10th round to unify the titles at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas on July 19, 2025.

On July 4, 2025, Turki Alalshikh announced that Rodriguez would be challenging Fernando Martínez (18–0, 9 KOs) next for his WBA super flyweight title in November. Prior to the fight, it was revealed that Rodriguez would become a free agent following the bout as his contract with Matchroom Boxing was ending. Matchroom CEO Frank Smith was confident in securing a new deal to continue their relationship, stating, "I think we've done great things together and will continue to do great things. I'm excited about what the future holds." During fight week, Rodriguez expressed his intention to compete in two additional fights at his current weight class before transitioning to bantamweight. His goal was to capture the IBF title held by Willibaldo Garcia prior to making the move. He also indicated a desire to fight in Japan against opponents such as Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatani. Rodriguez weighed 114.6 pounds and Martinez weighed 113.2 pounds. Rodriguez won by knockout in the tenth round, demonstrating a strong performance throughout the fight. He maintained control, winning all the rounds before the stoppage. Martinez had difficulty implementing any notable offense, as Rodriguez's accuracy and movement allowed him to stay in charge. In the tenth round, Rodriguez landed a well-timed left hook to Martinez's jaw, causing him to fall backward and leading the referee to count him out. According to CompuBox, Rodriguez landed 276 of 717 total punches (38%), while Martinez landed 131 of 520 thrown (25%). 232 shots landed by Rodriguez were power punches. Hearn later indicated that Rodriguez may consider moving up to the bantamweight division rather than pursuing an undisputed title at super flyweight.

Personal life

Rodriguez currently resides in San Antonio, Texas. He has been in a relationship with Rebecca Delic since 2020, and they have a daughter named Mila together. Their son was born in November 2025 during Rodriguez's time in Riyadh for his fight against Fernando Martínez, a victory he dedicated to his newborn.

In November 2016, Rodriguez entered into a managerial agreement with trainer Robert Garcia and was signed to a promotional pact with Teiken Promotions. In January 2022, he signed a multi-fight promotional deal with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing, later signing an extension in June, before penning a new agreement with the promotion in October 2024. Rodriguez is currently trained by Garcia, and during fight camps he regularly trains alongside his older brother Joshua Franco, a former WBA super flyweight champion.

Professional boxing record

Titles in boxing

Major world titles

• IBF flyweight champion (112 lbs)
• WBO flyweight champion (112 lbs)
• WBA super flyweight champion (115 lbs)
• WBC super flyweight champion (115 lbs) (2×)
• WBO super flyweight champion (115 lbs)

The Ring magazine titles

• The Ring super flyweight champion (115 lbs)

Lineal titles

• Lineal super flyweight champion (115 lbs)

Awards

• WBC Performance of the Year: 2024 vs. Juan Francisco Estrada
• WBC Revelation of the Year: 2022
• 2× ESPN Best Fighter Under the Age of 25: 2023, 2024
• ESPN Fighter of the Midyear: 2022
• WBN Pound-for-Pound Breakthrough: 2025
• 2× WBN Young Fighter of the Year: 2022, 2023
• The Fight City Fighter of the Year: 2022
• The Sweet Science (TSS) Breakthrough Fighter of the Year: 2022
• BOXRAW Breakout Star of the Year: 2022
• The Fight Site Breakout of the Year: 2022
• U.S. Junior National Championships Outstanding Junior Male Boxer of the Tournament: 2016

See also

• List of male boxers
• Notable boxing families
• List of southpaw stance boxers
• List of Mexican boxing world champions
• List of world flyweight boxing champions
• List of world super-flyweight boxing champions

External links

• from BoxRec (registration required)
• at