Julian Rodriguez didn’t hesitate to accept when Zuffa Boxing presented Cain Sandoval as a potential opponent for his debut.

Sacramento’s Sandoval is mostly untested entering their intriguing 10-round opener of Zuffa Boxing’s premiere on Paramount+ on Friday night in Las Vegas. The 23-year-old junior welterweight owns the same record as the hard-hitting prospect Rodriguez knocked out in his last fight, Avious Griffin.

Rodriguez (24-1, 15 KOs) believes Sandoval (17-0, 15 KOs) and his handlers have made the same matchmaking mistake Jake Paul’s MVP Promotions committed when it chose him as Griffin’s opponent.

“I just feel like I have too many tools for him,” Rodriguez told The Ring. “He’s coming to the fight with only one weapon. He only has one game plan, to come forward and throw these pitty-pat punches. I’ve studied the tape. I’ve been doing this a long time. This is boxing. Anything can happen. But I know how I feel, I know what my capabilities are and I really don’t think he’s gonna be able to handle it.”

Griffin (18-1, 17 KOs), of Chattanooga, Tennessee, couldn’t handle Rodriguez’s power on the Paul-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. undercard June 28. Rodriguez overcame an eighth-round knockdown to drop and stop Griffin in the 10th, with only five seconds remaining in a fight that was even on two cards.

MVP Promotions pursued an immediate rematch for Griffin, but the deal didn’t make financial sense to Rodriguez.

“We had this deal signed before the Avious Griffin fight,” Rodriguez said. “[Zuffa Boxing] knew they were gonna start their shows in ’26, so they gave me time to go find fights on my own. I got the Avious fight, beat him. We tried to circle back for the rematch, but they didn’t really want the rematch because of how the negotiations went. They were so stupid, so we just decided to wait it out and we’re here now, on the first show for Zuffa Boxing.”

Rodriguez’s fight with Sandoval will open a three-fight stream scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. ET on Paramount+, which will launch its seven-year, $7.7 billion agreement with UFC the next night from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The Zuffa Boxing card, headlined by Irish junior middleweight contender Callum Walsh (15-0, 11 KOs), who moved up to middleweight to meet Mexican veteran Carlos Ocampo (38-3, 26 KOs), will take place at UFC’s newly named Meta Apex performance center.

For Rodriguez, 31, it’s a perfect opportunity to continue the resurrection of a once-promising prospect whose career stalled due largely to injuries and inactivity. The 2013 national Golden Gloves champ from Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, has lost only to former junior lightweight and lightweight champ Jose Pedraza, who stopped him following the eighth round of a competitive fight in June 2021.

“I just feel like this is the time for me, maturity-wise, health-wise,” Rodriguez said. “I had a great camp. I feel amazing. Everything has been on point. I smiled through the weight cut, and my mindset is on point. I know it’s gonna be a good back and forth. Let’s just see how he holds up.”