Anthony ‘Fluffy’ Hernandez has made it onto Dricus du Plessis’ radar.
The surging UFC middleweight contender made it eight wins in a row in what was his second UFC main event on Saturday night. The #10-ranked Hernandez fought #9 contender Roman Dolidze at UFC Vegas 109.
Despite being one ranking lower, Hernandez showed he was levels above Dolidze, dominating the Georgian to the championship rounds. Hernandez even celebrated early after he almost finished Dolidze in the closing seconds of round 2.
Hernandez ultimately tapped out Dolidze in the fourth round, calling for a title shot against the winner of next week’s middleweight title fight between the reigning and defending champion Dricus du Plessis and the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev.
Ahead of the biggest UFC fight of the year, du Plessis chimed in on Hernandez cashing ‘easy money’ against a well-respected top contender in Dolidze.
Dricus du Plessis impressed by Anthony Hernandez’s latest performance at UFC Vegas 109
Hernandez dominated Dolidze everywhere the fight went, taking his opponent down nine times for seven minutes and 48 seconds of control time and outlanding him by nearly 100 strikes.
It’s safe to say the champion liked what he saw out of Hernandez at the UFC Apex.
“What a performance by Fluffy!” du Plessis wrote of Hernandez’s performance on X.
Hernandez is one of a few top-10 contenders du Plessis could meet after Chimaev at UFC 319 next weekend, with a successful title defense, of course.
Could Anthony Hernandez land winner of Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319?
Hernandez’s eight-fight win streak is only second to du Plessis in the middleweight division (11).
Hernandez hasn’t lost in five years, his latest loss coming to former ranked contender Kevin Holland via body shot TKO back in 2020.
‘Fluffy’s’ resume features wins over the likes of Dolidze, Brendan Allen, Michel Pereira, Roman Kopylov, Edmen Shahbazyan and more.
How likely is a title opportunity for Hernandez after his second main event win? Well, it’s hard to say because as talented and well-rounded as the 31-year-old is, there are still other contenders ranked ahead of him, who are also coming off wins.
The #6-ranked Caio Borralho, the official back-up fighter for du Plessis vs. Chimaev could potentially tie Hernandez’s current streak with an eighth-straight UFC victory over #1 contender Nassourdine Imavov.
Imavov and Borralho have a great chance at fighting the winner of the next middleweight title fight with one more victory in the main event of UFC Paris on Sept. 6.
