19 Year-Old Raul Rosas Jr. Rebooks UFC Return Against ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ Winner

Is the second time the charm for this bantamweight bout?

Sep 16, 2023; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Raul Rosas Jr. (red gloves) reacts after defeating Terrence / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

The youngest fighter on the UFC roster is back.

That’s right, the rising Raul Rosas Jr. is set to make his third appearance in the UFC Octagon after signing with the promotion back in 2022 at just 17 years old. Now 19, 'El Niño Problema's' next test comes against a much more experienced Ricky Turcios. 

The bantamweight bout is targeted to take place at a UFC Fight Night event on June 8th, according to MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin. The location has yet to be announced but Louisville, Kentucky seems to be a 'strong' possibility to hold the card, per MMA Junkie's Nolan King.

This isn't the first time Rosas Jr. and Turcios have been booked to fight each other. The two fighters were originally scheduled to collide at UFC Mexico City in February, but the plug was pulled on the matchup at the last second as Rosas Jr. withdrew due to illness on fight night.

The UFC tried to put the fight together again the following weekend at UFC Vegas 87 from inside the UFC Apex, but the bout ultimately didn't come to fruition.

We last saw Rosas Jr. at UFC Noche, where he bounced back from his first professional loss to Christian Rodriguez, with a quick TKO win over Terrence Mitchell in less than a minute. The finish boosted Rosas Jr's record to 8-1 right before his 19th birthday a month later.

It's a battle between 'Dana White's Contender Series' and 'The Ultimate Fighter' as the DWCS contract winner takes on TUF Champion Turcios.

The 30-year-old Turcios secured his UFC contract on the 29th season of the UFC reality TV show, winning the bantamweight tournament in 2021 with victories over Liudvik Sholinian and Dan Argueta.

Turcios has gone 2-1 in the Octagon since the show ended, with his last fight being a split decision win over Kevin Natividad in Nov. 2022. By the time Turcios enters the cage with Raul Rosas Jr. on June 8, it will have been 567 days since we've seen 'Pretty' Ricky in action.

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