RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 22: (R-L) Gregory Rodrigues of Brazil punches Anthony Hernandez in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Golden 1 Center on August 22, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Last night (Sat., Aug. 22, 2026), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, for UFC Sacramento . In the main event, “Sactown’s” own Anthony Hernandez aimed to return to the win column opposite the hard-hitting Gregory Rodrigues . In addition, former Middleweights Reinier de Ridder and Roman Dolidze were also looking for a fresh start at 205 pounds. The whole card featured an incredible number of finishes, making for a fun night of action.
Let’s take a closer look at the best performances and highlight finishes of the evening:
Robocop Rallies
It wasn’t easy, but Rodrigues fought intelligently to score his first main event victory.
Rodrigues did not head hunt against the nonstop grinder. From the first bell, Rodrigues was using knees and body punches to wear at Hernandez. When Hernandez wrestled, Rodrigues was hitting him with close range elbows and short punches, always damaging. The true difference-maker turned out to be the calf kick. Hernandez walked through a handful without reacting, but by the second round, he was getting swept off his feet every time Rodrigues touched his leg.
“Fluffy” has no quit in him. He rallied late in the second after nearly being knocked out to crack Rodrigues with a flurry and land a big takedown. Hernandez continued to push in the third, landing hard shots and chaining together takedown attempts. Because he was already damaged, however, Rodrigues was able to push back in the fourth and put the hurt on Hernandez once again.
Rodrigues finished the fifth on top — who would have predicted that?
The elephant in the room when analyzing this fight is size. At times, this looked like a Light Heavyweight versus a Welterweight. Hernandez repeatedly landed in good position to wrestle but just couldn’t ground Rodrigues. I know “Fluffy” doesn’t have the easiest time cutting to 185 pounds, but it may be time to team up with the UFC PI and figure out if his body could shed some mass.
Dolidze Is Shot
Dolidze has always been a weird fighter, but he used to be good too. His power punches and love of K-Guard were strangely effective against most opponents, producing some positively violent wins. He was genuinely a Top 15 contender at 185 pounds, but those days are clearly over.
Dolidze’s game plan here was almost as bad as Kennedy Nzechukwu’s strategy. After taking one kick and one punch, Dolidze immediately pulled guard and committed way too heavily to attacking the leg. “RDR” is a talented jiu-jitsu black belt with competition experience — he’s not going to just fall into a heel hook in a sport where punches and elbows are allowed.
Predictably, de Ridder started hitting Dolidze, and the leg attacks grew less threatening quickly. Rather than abandon his inversion and try something new, Dolidze pretty much just gave up. After a hundred more strikes, the referee moved in to save him.
Is Reinier de Ridder a factor at Light Heavyweight after a successful return to 205 pounds? I have no idea! How could you? He pummeled a former Middleweight with an awful strategy and questionable commitment — does that mean anything?
WMMA’s Next Rising Striker
Carli Judice is a lot of fun.
The “Crispy” kickboxer from Louisiana knows how to hurt her opponents. She doesn’t have the natural punching power of a Jessica Andrade , but Judice nevertheless does a lot of damage with well-placed strikes and smart shot selection. Opposite Jeisla Chaves , Judice secured her fourth-straight victory with a stabbing front kick to the belly that crumpled her opponent along the fence.
Judice landed that same kick a couple times prior to the stoppage, and it produced a visible wince every time.
At 27 years of age, Judice is picking up momentum quickly. She’s a nice change of pace from the usual power-less Flyweight striker; she’s throwing mean shots without losing her technical form. Given her current run of wins and knockouts, it may be time for a ranked opponent.
Pretty Boy Shines
Jamall Emmers shocked a lot of people with his first-round knockout upset of Lerryann Douglas .
In truth, there were reasons to call this upset ahead of time. Emmers has a ton of UFC experience and has fought top talent for many years now. Most of his losses were very competitive, and he’s a tough out every single time even at 37 years of age. Despite Douglas’ recent success — “Gunslinger” entered this bout having won six in a row via KO — he was stopped numerous times earlier in his career.
From the first bell, Douglas was pushing hard with calf kicks and ferocious swings. He wasn’t really setting up the latter, which allowed Emmers to avoid a majority of his hooking punches. Conversely, Emmers was sticking jabs and patiently working to line up his right hand. As soon as it landed clean, Douglas hit the floor!
I won’t call it a fraud check. Douglas is clearly a vicious puncher with power that demands respect, and Emmers is underrated. However, this was clearly a case of a hype train getting a little out of hand — there’s no reason Douglas should have been -400 against the more proven fighter.
Featherweight’s Newest Knockout Artist
Marcio Barbosa has thunder in his hands.
The fireplug from Rio de Janeiro picked up his second-straight knockout win last night in style. His opponent, Ryan Kuse , has plenty of experience in striking, a veteran of Karate Combat and bare knuckle MMA, yet he still looked terrified to trade with Barbosa. That fear turned out to be understandable, as the first left hook Barbosa landed knocked Kuse into outer space.
Barbosa was a prolific knockout artist already, and he’s now established that his power is a real threat in the UFC as well. Hopefully, we can see him face a more est...
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