UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs. Rodrigues

UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs. Rodrigues took place on August 22, 2026 in Sacramento, CA, USA, headlined by Anthony Hernandez vs Gregory Rodrigues. See full results, round-by-round breakdowns, fight statistics, where to watch, venue details, and the 13-fight card below.

Gregory Rodrigues beat Anthony Hernandez by unanimous decision in the five-round middleweight main event at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on 22 August 2026. The judges scored it 48-47, 49-46 and 48-47, and it is the biggest win of the Brazilian's career.

The rankings moved accordingly. Rodrigues went in at No. 10 and climbed three places to No. 7, while Hernandez, No. 7 going in, slipped to No. 9. Rodrigues is now 20-6 and on a four-fight winning streak after victories over Jack Hermansson, Roman Kopylov and Brunno Ferreira.

For Hernandez, a Northern California fighter headlining close to home, it was a painful night. He is now 15-4 with one no contest and on a two-fight skid, following his loss to Sean Strickland in February that ended an eight-fight winning run.

The card also marked the UFC's first visit to Sacramento since July 2019, after the event was moved from the Meta Apex in Las Vegas. A crowd of 16,867 produced a gate of $3.3 million.

Two numbers explain the main event. Rodrigues knocked Hernandez down four times, largely off kicks to the lead leg, and he defended 26 of Hernandez's 29 takedown attempts.

The second round was nearly the end. Rodrigues chopped down the lead leg and followed with heavy shots, and Hernandez looked in serious trouble before hauling himself through to the bell.

Hernandez then did what he does best. His relentless pace took over in the third round and he seized control, which is the pressure that carried him through eight straight wins. Rodrigues found a second wind in the fourth, and in the fifth Hernandez chased takedowns while Rodrigues stayed upright and kept landing the heavier blows.

Before the fight, the question about Rodrigues was whether his power would last 25 minutes against a volume fighter. He answered it directly afterwards: "I shut up all the mouths who said I can't fight five rounds."

Vitor Petrino beat Serghei Spivac 30-27 on all three cards in the heavyweight co-main event. After an even start on the feet, Petrino took Spivac down in both the second and third rounds and wore him out with control and short strikes. He is now 4-0 since moving up to heavyweight and rose three places to No. 8, while Spivac fell four spots to No. 13.

It was not a performance that screams title contender, but beating a grappler of Spivac's quality at his own game is a meaningful step for the Contender Series graduate.

Reinier de Ridder's return to light heavyweight could hardly have gone better. Both men came in on two-fight losing streaks, and Roman Dolidze pulled guard to chase leg locks. Once de Ridder escaped, he unloaded a non-stop barrage of strikes for the stoppage at 4:01 of the first round. The Dutchman, whose last outing was a flat loss to Brendan Allen at middleweight, went straight into the light heavyweight rankings at No. 9.

MarQuel Mederos stopped Mason Jones at 2:07 of the second round. Jones had built momentum early in the round, but a right hand put him on skates and referee Jason Herzog stepped in. Mederos is now 4-0-1 in the UFC and unbeaten in 11, ending a seven-fight winning run for Jones.

Carli Judice ended Jeisla Chaves's unbeaten record with a front kick to the body at 1:39 of the first round, after picking her apart from range. It was her fourth win in a row and earned her the No. 15 spot in the women's flyweight rankings.

Heavyweight Shamil Gaziev snapped a two-fight losing run by knocking out Kennedy Nzechukwu in 80 seconds, and Jamall Emmers stopped Lerryan Douglas at 3:38 of the first, a result that put Emmers into the featherweight rankings at No. 14.

Christopher Padilla cut it as fine as possible, submitting Nasrat Haqparast with an arm-triangle choke with one second left in the third round to stay unbeaten in the UFC. Debutant Anthony Wint also finished with an arm-triangle, a technical submission of Terrance Chatman at 4:29 of the first after escaping an early kimura threat.

On the prelims, Marcio Barbosa stopped late replacement Ryan Kuse at 2:47 of the first after original opponent Danny Silva was hospitalised with a pulmonary embolism. Newcomer Stanley Dorsainvil, in for Kody Steele, outpointed Gauge Young, Jackson McVey kept his perfect finishing record by stopping Wesley Schultz at 4:13 of the first, and Shanelle Dyer stopped Elise Reed in the third round.

Rodrigues and Hernandez shared Fight of the Night, worth $100,000 each, for a main event that swung back and forth across all five rounds.

The two $100,000 Performance of the Night awards went to MarQuel Mederos for his comeback stoppage of Mason Jones and Carli Judice for her body-kick finish of Jeisla Chaves. Full judges' scores are on the official UFC Sacramento scorecards.

Rodrigues wasted no time aiming high, calling out former champion Dricus du Plessis in the cage: "That's a No. 1 contender match to fight for the belt." The title now belongs to Sean Strickland, who took it from Khamzat Chimaev by split decision at UFC 328 in May. Du Plessis would be a huge step up, but after four straight wins and a top-seven ranking, Rodrigues has earned a name from the top five.

Hernandez needs a rebuild after back-to-back defeats. At 32, and still ranked No. 9, a fight against someone just outside the top ten would make sense before any return to headline status.

Mederos has already asked for a top-15 opponent, naming Beneil Dariush and Chris Duncan, and either would be a fair test of an 11-fight unbeaten run. Petrino, now inside the heavyweight top ten, and de Ridder, freshly ranked at light heavyweight, should both be matched with ranked opposition next.

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Event venue, local timezone, and map details for fight night.

Who won UFC Sacramento Hernandez vs Rodrigues?

Gregory Rodrigues won the UFC Sacramento main event, beating Anthony Hernandez by unanimous decision on 22 August 2026 at the Golden 1 Center. He knocked Hernandez down four times and defended 26 of 29 takedown attempts over five rounds. It extended Rodrigues's winning streak to four and handed Hernandez his second straight defeat.

What were the Hernandez vs Rodrigues scorecards?

The judges scored the fight 48-47, 49-46 and 48-47, all in favour of Gregory Rodrigues. The two close cards reflect Hernandez's strong third round, when his pace and pressure briefly took over, before Rodrigues regained control in the fourth and held off Hernandez's takedown attempts in the fifth to seal the unanimous decision.

Who won bonuses at UFC Sacramento?

Gregory Rodrigues and Anthony Hernandez shared Fight of the Night for their five-round main event. The Performance of the Night awards went to MarQuel Mederos, who stopped Mason Jones in the second round, and Carli Judice, who finished Jeisla Chaves with a front kick to the body in the first. Each bonus was worth $100,000.

Who did Gregory Rodrigues call out after UFC Sacramento?

Rodrigues called out former middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis, describing the fight as a No. 1 contender match for the title. Sean Strickland currently holds the middleweight belt after beating Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328 in May 2026. No fight between Rodrigues and du Plessis has been confirmed, and it would be the Brazilian's biggest test to date.

Where are Rodrigues and Hernandez ranked after UFC Sacramento?

In the UFC's official rankings update after the event, Gregory Rodrigues climbed three places from No. 10 to No. 7 at middleweight. Anthony Hernandez dropped two spots from No. 7 to No. 9. Elsewhere on the card, Vitor Petrino rose to No. 8 at heavyweight and Reinier de Ridder entered the light heavyweight rankings at No. 9.