Multiple times a day he would be tormented. The anxiety froze him. His hands, his arms, his legs would shake. It happened when he was driving. It even occurred during casual conversations with friends. The pangs of nerves gripped him like a vice, and seemingly wouldn’t let go.

It was scary. It was trying. It tested Julian Rodriguez.

But what do fighters do, much like Marines, they adjust, they adapt—and eventually, they overcome.

Rodriguez is only 24. He’s a promising, undefeated junior welterweight who had his share of issue to overcome.

Now, he’s back, fighting for the second time this year—and, more importantly—fighting.

Rodriguez (17-0, 11 knockouts) steps into the ring with Filipino Leonardo Doronio (17-16-3, 11 KOs) in a scheduled six-round junior welterweight bout on the Oleksandr Gvozdyk- Artur Beterbiev undercard from Temple University’s Liacouras Center Friday night on ESPN/ESPN Deportes (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).

This will mark the third time he’s fighting in three years and the first time in three years that’s he’s fought twice in one year. In 2015, he underwent surgery on his left shoulder to repair a torn labrum.

It’s taken four years for him to recover.

“My only down time in the sport came when I was recovering from the surgery, since I’ve been from when I was seven,” Rodriguez said. “It tested me. I learned a lot of valuable things about myself, and I realized that my family is my strongest support system. That kept me going and thank God for us being so close.

“For me, though, it was anxiety attacks. My body would go numb. I would start to tear up. It’s what would happen to me. Keep in mind, all of these years, I was doing something very physical, and when you’re not doing that, it rewires your body.

“Nothing was going on in my household or to my family. But I would get these thoughts that my family was taken away, my children were taken away. Having that happen, it gave me a greater appreciate of things.”

Then, Rodriguez recalled a memory of talking to friends and during a conversation about music, a sidelight of Rodriguez’s, he burst out into tears for no reason.

“I had to walk away, and create a mental system of staying in the present and if something did pop into my head, I would immediately think about three positive things,” Rodriguez said. “One time I was driving, I felt another attack coming on and I focused on driving.”

Rodriguez admits he doesn’t know much about Doronio. He knows Doronio is from the Philippines and he’s been around boxing long to also know any pro fighter is a danger.

Rodriguez says this is the healthies he’s been in two years.

“The injury forced me to change my style a little bit, and it’s helped me more working with my footwork and my jab,” Rodriguez said. “The No. 1 prioity for me Friday night is to be intelligent. This is the strongest that I’ve been, and I feel a lot more comfortable in the ring.

“I remember having great camps in the past, and then I would get to the fight, something would happen. That’s not happening, nor will it happen. My dad, Alex, is still my trainer and my team is still intact. I’ll be ready Friday night.

“I can’t wait.”

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