UFC Sacramento Recap: Gregory Rodrigues Outlasts Anthony Hernandez in Five-Round War

By Brian Hradsky

UFC Sacramento delivered one of the promotion’s more entertaining Fight Night cards of the year Saturday night, with 10 finishes across 13 fights, several violent knockouts and a competitive five-round middleweight main event.

Gregory “Robocop” Rodrigues walked out of Golden 1 Center with the biggest victory of his career, defeating Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez by unanimous decision after 25 minutes. The judges scored the fight 48-47, 49-46 and 48-47 for Rodrigues.

Rodrigues entered the fight riding considerable momentum, but Hernandez represented a significant jump in competition. Hernandez came into Sacramento ranked among the upper tier of the middleweight division after winning eight of his previous nine fights. Rodrigues answered that challenge and may have completely changed the middleweight title picture.

Rodrigues Survives Hernandez Pressure

Hernandez immediately attempted to make the fight uncomfortable.

He pressured Rodrigues into the fence, repeatedly attacked takedowns and tried to turn the fight into the kind of exhausting clinch battle that has become his trademark. Rodrigues remained composed, defended the early takedown attempts and landed elbows, punches and knees whenever Hernandez gave him enough space.

The biggest early difference came from Rodrigues’ leg attacks.

Rodrigues repeatedly hammered Hernandez’s lead leg in the second round. Several kicks visibly compromised Hernandez’s movement, with Hernandez collapsing multiple times from the damage. Rodrigues then followed the kicks with combinations and ground strikes, forcing Hernandez to deal with offense from several different positions.

Hernandez was far from finished.

He came storming back in the third round, quickly completing a takedown and returning to his relentless pressure game. The Sacramento crowd rallied behind Hernandez as he pushed Rodrigues through another series of grappling exchanges.

However, Rodrigues had already done substantial damage and continued finding enough offense throughout the championship rounds to maintain his advantage.

The judges ultimately agreed.

Rodrigues won unanimously, extending his winning streak to four and recording his first victory in a five-round fight.

Hernandez Raises Glove-Grabbing Complaint

There was some controversy following the fight.

Hernandez claimed Rodrigues repeatedly grabbed inside his gloves during grappling exchanges. Hernandez said he brought the issue to referee Herb Dean, who warned Rodrigues but did not deduct a point. Hernandez also revealed that he dealt with a shoulder issue during training camp and injured his leg early in the fight, although he still accepted responsibility for the defeat.

Hernandez has now suffered consecutive losses after previously putting together an eight-fight winning streak.

For Rodrigues, the opposite is true.

“Robocop” has suddenly become one of the most interesting names in the division.

Following the victory, Rodrigues mentioned former champion Dricus du Plessis as a potential opponent and also expressed interest in fighting Khamzat Chimaev.

Vitor Petrino Sweeps Serghei Spivac

Vitor Petrino delivered a disciplined performance in the heavyweight co-main event, defeating Serghei Spivac by unanimous decision.

All three judges scored the fight 30-27 for Petrino.

Petrino established his striking early with jabs and damaging leg kicks while preventing Spivac from consistently establishing the grappling game that has made him dangerous throughout his UFC career.

Petrino then surprisingly became the fighter controlling the ground exchanges.

He secured takedowns in the second round, worked from full guard and eventually advanced into mount while landing punches and elbows. Spivac had moments late in the round but spent much of the fight reacting to Petrino’s offense.

Petrino continued controlling the action in the third round and completed additional takedowns before cruising to the decision.

It was not the wildest fight on the card, but it was one of its most complete performances.

Reinier de Ridder Dominates Roman Dolidze

Reinier de Ridder’s return to light heavyweight could not have gone much better.

De Ridder overwhelmed Roman Dolidze on the ground and earned a first-round TKO at 4:01.

Dolidze attempted to attack submissions from the bottom early, but de Ridder quickly established top control and began unloading punches and elbows.

The former ONE Championship titleholder methodically improved his position, eventually moving into mount before Dolidze surrendered his back. De Ridder continued landing unanswered strikes until the referee stopped the fight.

De Ridder had previously competed at middleweight in the UFC but returned to the 205-pound division Saturday. He previously held championships at both 205 and 225 pounds in ONE Championship.

If Saturday was any indication, light heavyweight may be exactly where de Ridder belongs.

MarQuel Mederos Stops Mason Jones

One of the night’s most entertaining fights belonged to MarQuel Mederos and Mason Jones.

Jones appeared to have the advantage through much of the opening round and all three Sherdog scorers gave him the first five minutes.

Then everything changed.

Mederos hurt Jones with an elbow during the second round and immediately recognized the opportunity.

He swarmed Jones with punches, trapped him against the fence and continued unloading until a final left hook buckled Jones’ knees.

Referee Jason Herzog stopped the fight at 2:07 of the second round.

The victory improved Mederos to 4-0-1 in the UFC and represented the first time Jones had been finished during his professional career.

Carli Judice Destroys Jeisla Chaves With Body Kick

Carli Judice produced perhaps the cleanest finish of the entire event.

Judice landed a perfectly placed front kick to the body that immediately folded previously unbeaten Jeisla Chaves.

Chaves dropped near the cage and Judice followed with punches until the referee stopped the fight at 1:39 of the opening round.

It was a statement performance for Judice and ended Chaves’ undefeated professional record.

The UFC rewarded Judice with one of the night’s $100,000 Performance of the Night bonuses.

Anthony Wint Wins UFC Debut

Anthony Wint remained undefeated with a dominant UFC debut against Terrance Chatman.

Wint secured a takedown, advanced position and eventually locked in an arm-triangle choke.

Chatman went unconscious rather than tapping, giving Wint the technical submission victory at 4:29 of Round 1.

Wint moved to 8-0 professionally and immediately gave UFC fans another heavyweight prospect worth watching.

Jamall Emmers Scores Upset Finish

Jamall Emmers made a major statement against Lerryan Douglas.

Douglas entered his second UFC appearance with considerable momentum, but Emmers controlled the range effectively before landing the decisive combination.

Emmers dropped Douglas with a clean one-two and followed him to the ground with hammerfists.

The stoppage came at 3:38 of the first round.

Shamil Gaziev Lands One-Punch Knockout

Shamil Gaziev did not need much time against Kennedy Nzechukwu.

Gaziev landed a straight right that immediately shut Nzechukwu’s lights off.

The heavyweight crashed to the canvas and the fight ended at just 1:20 of Round 1.

There was no follow-up barrage required.

One punch ended it.

Chris Padilla Gets Submission at 4:59

Chris Padilla produced one of the craziest finishes of the evening.

Padilla and Nasrat Haqparast appeared destined for the judges when Padilla found an arm-triangle choke in the final seconds.

Haqparast lost consciousness.

The official time?

4:59 of the third round.

One second remained.

Padilla was reportedly ahead 20-18 on the official scorecards entering the third round but never settled for simply reaching the judges.

Instead, he found the finish at essentially the last possible moment.

Marcio Barbosa Finishes Ryan Kuse

Marcio Barbosa overwhelmed Ryan Kuse in the opening round.

Kuse attempted several takedowns, but Barbosa defended them before dropping Kuse with a left hook.

The referee stopped the fight at 2:47 of Round 1.

Stan Dorsainvil Wins Competitive Decision

Stanley Dorsainvil and Gauge Young were responsible for one of only three fights on the card that reached the judges.

Young had the stronger opening round, but Dorsainvil increased his pressure as the fight progressed.

Dorsainvil mixed punches, knees, elbows and takedowns while producing the stronger moments during the second and third rounds.

All three judges scored it 29-28 for Dorsainvil.

Jackson McVey Crushes Schultz With Body Knee

Jackson McVey delivered another memorable finish.

McVey landed a crushing knee directly to Wesley Schultz’s body late in the first round.

Schultz collapsed immediately.

McVey followed with several ground strikes before the referee stepped in at 4:13 of Round 1.

Shanelle Dyer Batters Elise Reed

Shanelle Dyer controlled essentially every phase of her fight with Elise Reed.

Dyer repeatedly landed combinations, kicks and knees while forcing Reed backward.

Reed’s corner even considered stopping the fight between rounds before allowing her to continue.

Dyer made the decision for them early in the third.

Another sustained combination forced the referee to intervene at 1:42 of Round 3.

UFC Sacramento Full Results

Main Card

• Gregory Rodrigues def. Anthony Hernandez — unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 48-47)
• Vitor Petrino def. Serghei Spivac — unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Reinier de Ridder def. Roman Dolidze — TKO, punches, Round 1, 4:01
• MarQuel Mederos def. Mason Jones — TKO, elbows and punches, Round 2, 2:07
• Carli Judice def. Jeisla Chaves — TKO, front kick to body and punches, Round 1, 1:39
• Anthony Wint def. Terrance Chatman — technical submission, arm-triangle choke, Round 1, 4:29

Preliminary Card

• Jamall Emmers def. Lerryan Douglas — TKO, punches, Round 1, 3:38
• Shamil Gaziev def. Kennedy Nzechukwu — KO, punch, Round 1, 1:20
• Chris Padilla def. Nasrat Haqparast — technical submission, arm-triangle choke, Round 3, 4:59
• Marcio Barbosa def. Ryan Kuse — TKO, punch, Round 1, 2:47
• Stanley Dorsainvil def. Gauge Young — unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Jackson McVey def. Wesley Schultz — TKO, knee to body and punches, Round 1, 4:13
• Shanelle Dyer def. Elise Reed — TKO, punches, Round 3, 1:42

Performance Bonuses

UFC Sacramento featured 10 finishes, including seven fights that ended in the opening round.

The promotion awarded $100,000 bonuses following the event.

Fight of the Night: Gregory Rodrigues vs. Anthony Hernandez

Performance of the Night: Carli Judice

Performance of the Night: MarQuel Mederos

Rodrigues and Hernandez each received $100,000 for their main-event battle.

MSB Fight Club Take

Gregory Rodrigues needed a fight like this.

Everyone already knew Robocop could knock people out. Everyone knew he was dangerous and physically strong.

Saturday answered a different question.

Could Rodrigues fight intelligently for 25 minutes against one of the most relentless pressure fighters in the UFC?

The answer was yes.

Rodrigues did not simply survive Hernandez’s wrestling. He punished Hernandez for attempting it. His takedown defense, elbows in close quarters and especially his leg kicks completely changed the fight.

Now Rodrigues has earned the right to ask for someone near the top of the middleweight division.

Hernandez should not fall too far despite consecutive losses. His pressure remains extremely difficult to deal with, and he showed tremendous toughness by continuing to attack after his lead leg had been badly compromised.

But Saturday belonged to Rodrigues.

Elsewhere, Reinier de Ridder looked extremely dangerous back at light heavyweight, Carli Judice produced a highlight-reel body-shot finish and MarQuel Mederos continued quietly building one of the more interesting lightweight runs in the UFC.

Then there was Chris Padilla.

Winning by submission with one second remaining in a fight is exactly the kind of moment that makes MMA impossible to turn away from.

UFC Sacramento did not have a championship attached to it, but it delivered practically everything fans could want from a Fight Night card: knockouts, submissions, prospects, upsets and a five-round main event that may have produced a new middleweight contender.

MSB Fight Club Grade: A