8/20/26
The UFC touched down in Sacramento for a night full of wars, finishes, and a fight-of-the-year contender. Multiple impressive debuts throughout the card, new contenders being made, and new personalities bursting onto the scene on a wild and highlight-heavy night in the octagon. Here is a full recap of UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs Rodrigues.
Anthony Wint vs Terrance Chatman: Heavyweight
Anthony Wint remains undefeated with a round-one submission win over Terrance Chatman. A quick night in the office for the heavyweight who made his UFC debut after a KO win on Dana White’s Contender Series. He started against Chatman looking to set up a takedown with his jab. Chatman was the bigger man and kept the distance decently well, but midway through the round Wint saw his opportunity. After taking Chatman down, Wint controlled the fight from top position. Chatman actually threatened a kimura attempt but was unsuccessful. While passing guard, Wint got Chatman into a deep arm triangle, which was the beginning of the end. Wint squeezed until Chatman was out cold, securing the submission victory. An impressive debut for Wint, who is still undefeated in his career and looks to make his name known in the heavyweight division.
Carli Judice vs Jeisla Chaves: Women’s Flyweight
Caeli Judice gets the finish in round one with a teep kick right to the liver of Jeisla Chaves It only took a few minutes but the striking and specifically kicks of Judice made it a quick night in the octagon. Chaves came into the fight undefeated and put her record on the line against Judice who has finished other fighters quickly in the past. Although Chaves landed decent shots on the feet and in the clinch, the skill on the feet of Judice proved to be too much. She landed many teep kicks to the body of Chaves throughout the fight and the last was the final blow. Judice is now on a four-fight win streak and looks to get a ranked fight in the near future.
Marquel Mederos vs Mason Jones: Lightweight
A wild brawl from the start to the end in what was fight of the night up until this point. Mason Jones started off well and out-struck Mederos while also landing the bigger shots. He also was landing great leg kicks that were having an effect throughout the round and even knocked Mederos on his feet. In the second round, Jones kept the pace up with good volume. Mederos, though, backed up against the fence and landed a brutal elbow that stunned Jones. With Jones wobbled, Mederos lay into him as he could sense a finish coming. Multiple elbows, straights, rights, and a left hook to end it all knocked out Jones while standing. He is now on a five-fight win streak and looking to get a ranked opponent in the toughest division in the sport soon.
Reinier De Ridder vs Roman Dolidze: Light Heavyweight
Reinier De Ridder gets the round one TKO in his UFC light heavyweight debut. It took no time for the two men to hit the mat, and from the jump, De Ridder took a dominant position. Both men exchanged multiple times with Roman Dolidze, even threatening a knee bar from time to time. The jiu-jitsu of De Ridder was too good; however, he remained in control for the rest of the round. While on top, De Ridder rained down brutal ground-and-pound strikes that seemed never-ending. It seemed that Dolidze had both gassed himself out and taken too much damage on the ground. De Ridder in full mount poured on the strikes until the card had to be stopped. Reinier made quick work in his light heavyweight debut and will be facing a ranked opponent in his next fight.
Serghei Spivac vs Vitor Petrino: Heavyweight
Vitor Petrino showed dominance against the #6-ranked heavyweight in the world, Serghei Spivac, through three rounds. The first round was the most even on the feet and the only round that stayed standing. Both fighters landed decently throughout the round. Petrino had more volume and mixed up his strikes well with leg kicks and a jab that bloodied the nose of Spivac. The next two rounds were all Petrino for the most part as he secured quick takedowns and controlled Spivac on the mat. The gas tank of Serghei slowly withered away, and Petrino took advantage. There was a scare for Petrino in the third round where he was caught with a big shot from Spivac, but he weathered the storm and went right back to work on the ground. He will now be ranked in the top ten and is a near contender in the heavyweight division.
Anthony Hernandez vs Gregory Rodrigues: Middleweight
In what could be a contender for fight of the year, Anthony Hernandez and Gregory Rodrigues put on a war for the fans. Many questions were coming into this fight about Rodrigues’ gas tank and if the chin could stand firm. Both questions were answered, as it was a high-paced fight until the end wth many fight-ending shots being landed and both fighters pushing their physical limits. In the end, though, it was Gregory Rodrigues that ends up on top. His striking was a thing of beauty. From the body work to combinations to brutal leg kicks that dropped Hernandez five times. He about doubled, if not tripled, the number of strikes landed on Hernandez through five rounds.
Hernandez had a hard time securing takedowns, which is a credit to the defense of Rodrigues. While Hernandez had much more control time, it didn’t amount to anything damage-wise. Rodrigues refused to go down and then would punish Hernandez on the feet when it went back to the stand-up. A dominant win for “Robo Cop” against one of the best middleweights in the world. He will now be ranked in the top ten of the division and is in serious title contention.
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