Edwin Rodriguez has fought unbeaten guys before. Four times, in fact. Three of those dudes walked away without their zeroes. The fourth was Andre Ward, so no knock there.
Edwin Rodriguez knows not to underestimate a hungry fighter.
When he gets into the ring against Craig Baker, that will make five. Baker, at 16-0 (12 KOs) is coming off an upset win over Umberto Savigne that saw him drop stop the Cuban in the second round.
Even though he’s 31, Baker is lightly fought and still early in his career. Edwin Rodriguez (26-1, 17 KOs) knows that makes Baker dangerous.
“He’s hungry. He’s looking to prove something by beating me. I know he’s fought heavier as an amateur, at 200 pounds, so he’s a big guy,” Rodriguez said. “I think me being in there, having fought undefeated fighters, contenders, champions, it’s nothing new to me. So I’m very confident, but at the same time I know when I was coming up I was hungry. I’m still hungry, but when you’re coming up it’s a whole different kind of motivation, so I can’t take him lightly.”
Of course, experience isn’t the only advantage Rodriguez has in this tilt. His hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, is a short drive from Agganis Arena in Boston. Getting the fight on your home turf isn’t anything to complain about. The last time Rodriguez fought in New England was 2012’s tilt against Jason Escalera at Foxwoods Resort in Connecticut.
“I haven’t fought at home for about four years now,” he said.” I know there will be a big crowd for me. I’m going to have a lot of friends and family there, and I’m looking to impress. It’s a little added pressure, but hey, I know how to perform under pressure. So that’s cool.”
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