For the first time in seven years, the Octagon returns to the capital of California. UFC Sacramento takes place on August 22 at the Golden 1 Center. In the main event, Anthony Hernandez takes on Gregory Rodrigues in the middleweight division.
Multiple sources confirmed the booking to Heavy.com after an initial report from Connected MMA. In the media rankings, Hernandez is number six, and Rodrigues is number twelve. However, the new UFC Meta rankings place Hernandez at No. 7 and Rodrigues at No. 9.
The Dark Horse Of The Middleweight Division
Hernandez returns for the first time since his loss earlier this year to current champion Sean Strickland, a defeat that snapped his impressive eight-fight winning streak. Hernandez earned his UFC contract back in 2018 during Dana White’s Contender Series. The American fighter won by quick knockout but saw his win overturned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after he tested positive for marijuana. The UFC saw the talent in Hernandez and kept him around. Hernandez had a very difficult start to his UFC career, winning just one of his first three fights. In his fourth fight for the UFC, he beat multiple BJJ world champion Rodolfo Vieira, finishing him with a guillotine choke. One of the highlights of Hernandez’s career.
Hernandez kept on winning, and after beating Roman Kopylov in 2024, the American fighter found himself in the top 15 of the middleweight division. Hernandez ended the year with his first main event in the UFC. He completely demolished Michel Pereira, finishing the Brazilian via TKO in the fifth round. After also beating both Brendan Allen and Roman Dolidze last year, Hernandez looked on his way to the top of the division. But Sean Strickland had different plans. Strickland beat Hernandez by TKO in the third round. Hernandez needs to win now against Gregory Rodrigues to keep his eyes on the top of the middleweight division.
Fan Favorite And Rising Contender At Middleweight
For Rodrigues, the fight against Hernandez is another chance to mix it up with the top contenders in the middleweight division. The Brazilian fighter got signed to the UFC in 2021 after failing to win on the Contender Series a year earlier. Rodrigues put together two knockout wins for the LFA promotion and got the call from the UFC. Rodrigues had a strong debut year in the UFC with wins over Duško Todorović and JunYong Park. In his third fight in the UFC, Rodrigues dropped a controversial split decision to Armen Petrosyan. But after amazing performances against Julian Marquez and Chidi Njokuani, the Brazilian got a shot at the rankings in 2023. At least, that was the intention. Unfortunately, Brad Tavares got injured and was replaced by promotional newcomer Brunno Ferreira.
Rodrigues, going in as a heavy favorite, walked into a hard punch and got knocked out. The Brazilian had to build up a new winning streak before getting a shot at the rankings. After three more wins, including a victory over Brad Tavares, Rodrigues took on Jared Cannonier in his first main event last year. After a solid start, Rodrigues lost via TKO in the fourth round. But just like always, Rodrigues was able to bounce back with wins over Jack Hermansson and Roman Kopylov. It got him a spot in the top 15. In his most recent fight, Rodrigues took sweet revenge against Brunno Ferreira. Three years after getting knocked out, he finished Ferreira by knockout in the first round. Now Rodrigues takes on Anthony Hernandes.
UFC Sacramento – (August 22)
- Anthony Hernandez vs. Gregory Rodrigues
- Carli Judice vs. Jeisla Chaves
- Jackson McVey vs. Wes Schultz
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