A sculpture will forever remember the figure of Joaquín Rodríguez Cabrera (1895 -1959), known and recognized in the world of Canarian wrestling and sports with the nickname 'Pollo de Uga'. It will be the Plaza de Uga, his town, the public space that houses the figurative work that the Yaiza City Council has already commissioned to the southern plastic arts teacher, Cintia Machín Morín, as confirmed by the mayor Óscar Noda, who highlights “the capacity and aesthetics of art to help build and value our cultural identity, and the best fighter of Lanzarote of all time is part of our history.”
Uga will have in the sculpture of Joaquín Rodríguez not only an artistic creation that will decorate the square with the figure of an illustrious son of the town, but also an image that transmits feelings and emotions. “We give Cintia Machín the responsibility of sculpting the work in homage to the 'Pollo de Uga', because she has already done it wonderfully with other characters from our municipality such as Víctor Fernández Gopar. We are convinced that due to her talent, her love for the municipality of Yaiza and her concern for preserving the cultural and heritage values of our towns, she is capable of conceiving the artistic representation of the 'Pollo de Uga' closest to reality,” notes Óscar Noda.
The artist Cintia Machín declares that “it is a pride and responsibility to represent such an iconic character for the sport and history of my municipality and Lanzarote.” The mayor, the Councilor for Sports, Ángel Lago, and the creator visited this Wednesday the area where the work will be installed. “The wrestling family of Lanzarote and the Canary Islands, and especially those of us who have been closely linked to the native sport, admire the career of the 'Pollo de Uga', so I am convinced that the feeling of Yaiza is shared by the entire Archipelago,” emphasizes the municipal head of Sports.
The historical website of Yaiza, with content compiled and ordered by researchers Óscar Torres Perdomo and Jesús Perdomo Ramírez, refers to the 'Pollo de Uga' as a “tall young man with a perfect body for whom it was difficult to find a fighter who could defeat him.”
The “Pollo de Uga” dazzled with his mere presence and that hard-earned fame as an extraordinary and almost indomitable fighter led him to face many challenges in Gran Canaria and Tenerife with days full of competitiveness and emotion. Last July marked 65 years since the death of Joaquín Rodríguez Cabrera, 'Pollo de Uga', and the municipality of Yaiza opens the doors to art to immortalize his effigy and legacy.
