Daniel Rodriguez said his eight-month stay in a Tijuana jail included a move from a packed processing cell to a better prison section controlled by a cartel leader.
Rodriguez discussed the prison details on Joe Rogan’s podcast after previously explaining how a post-fight trip to Tijuana turned into a federal case over marijuana at the border. The UFC welterweight already said Mexican border officers found weed in his backpack after his Kevin Holland win, but this follow-up focused on what happened once he was inside.
Rodriguez is an American fighter of Mexican descent who competes in the UFC welterweight division. He has fought professionally since 2015 and has also competed in Bellator, King of the Cage, and Combate Americas. His professional MMA record is listed at 20-5, and as of May 12, 2026, he is ranked No. 15 in the UFC welterweight division.
Rodriguez said one of the guards recognized him when he first went to court.
“When I first got there, and when I went to court the first time, one of the guards recognized me,” Rodriguez told Rogan. “I’m in handcuffs and shit, and he’s like, ‘Yo, can I get a picture?’ I’m like, ‘What? What?’”
Rodriguez said the scene confused the other inmates because a guard was treating him like a known fighter while he was still locked up.
“While I’m in handcuffs and the other inmates were like looking around like, ‘What the fuck? Who is this guy?’” Rodriguez said.
Watch the Joe Rogan podcast clip below:
Rodriguez Says A Cartel Leader Moved Him To A Better Section
Rodriguez said he spent his first 10 days in a small processing area with several inmates, people sleeping on the floor, and bug bites covering his body.
“I was there for like the first 10 days,” Rodriguez said. “And it was hell, bro. It was the worst.”
“I don’t know what kind of bugs there was in there, but they were like biting up my whole body,” Rodriguez said.
According to Rodriguez, a guard later tried to charge him $7,000 to move into a better cell before another inmate followed through on a promise to get him out of that section.
“The guards came and they pulled me out,” Rodriguez said. “They bring me to a whole different section of the prison, third floor and second building.”
“I go up there and I’m escorted by the guards,” Rodriguez said. “And there’s like a curtain, it’s like a curtain covering like the tier. And I’m like, ‘What the fuck is going on? Like, why is there a curtain?’”
“It turns out, dude’s like head of the cartel, you know, like a cartel leader,” Rodriguez said. “He’s like, ‘I want to just show you around a little bit, let you know how we’re running things over here.’”
Rodriguez said the section had televisions, a PlayStation, and far better conditions than the processing cell.
“This dude had it made,” Rodriguez said. “Dude has a PlayStation. He has like a whole bunch of just all the amenities you can think of.”
“He’s like, ‘Yo,’ he’s like, ‘I run it here,’” Rodriguez said. “This is like pretty much, you know, our home.”
The cartel leader charged Rodriguez $3,000 to become his cellmate, according to the source report. Rodriguez said the arrangement also made him feel like he had a role when they moved around the prison.
“I ended up getting the feeling like I was like his protection,” Rodriguez said. “When we go to yard, I just be like, he’s like, ‘Hey, walk with me.’”
“I got the impression like, all right, I’m his cellmate,” Rodriguez said. “I got this guy’s back, you know, he got my back, I got his. And I really trusted him, you know, and that’s one hard thing to do in jail, but like, you catch vibes off people real easy.”
Rodriguez is now back in the UFC picture after the jail ordeal. His next step is a main event against Uros Medic at UFC Belgrade, which puts him back in active competition after a year that began with a Tijuana jail release and a push to resume his UFC career.
