Anthony Hernandez (born October 18, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2014, he has also competed with Global Knockout and Legacy Fighting Alliance. As of August 27, 2024, he is #13 in the UFC middleweight rankings.

Background

Hernandez grew up in Dunnigan, California and graduated from Woodland High School in 2011. He wrestled in high school but got kicked out of the team because of grades. He attended college for a spell but dropped out to pursue a career in mixed martial arts.

Martial arts career

Amateur career

Hernandez made his amateur debut in 2010 during Ring of Fire 1, when he faced Michael Green Jr. He won the fight via unanimous decision. This would be the first win of an eight fight winning streak, which ended in a chance to fight for the King of the Cage Amateur Middleweight title, against Justin Jones. Hernandez lost the fight by submission in the first round.

Early career

In 2018, during LFA 32, Hernandez fought for the Legacy Fighting Alliance Middleweight title against Brendan Allen. Hernandez won a unanimous decision. Fighting under the banner of Dana White's Contender Series 10, Hernandez faced Jordan Wright. Despite winning the fight in 40 seconds via knockout, the fight would be declared a no contest, as Hernandez tested positive for marijuana. He was penalized 15% of his purse and suspended for 6 months.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Hernandez made his UFC debut on February 2, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Assunção vs. Moraes 2 when he faced Markus Perez. He lost in the second round, by anaconda choke. Hernandez faced Jun Yong Park on August 31, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang. He won this fight by anaconda choke. Hernandez faced Kevin Holland on May 16, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris. He lost the fight after just 39 seconds, by TKO. Hernandez was scheduled to face five-time Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Rodolfo Vieira on January 16, 2021, at

UFC on ABC 1 ''UFC on ABC: Holloway vs. Kattar'' (also known as ''UFC on ABC 1'' and ''UFC Fight Island 7'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 16, 2021, at the Etihad Arena on Yas Island ...

. However, Hernandez pulled out due to a positive COVID-19 test and they were rescheduled for UFC 258 on February 13, 2021. Hernandez won the fight via a guillotine choke in round two in a huge upset. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. Hernandez was scheduled to face Punahele Soriano on June 26, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 190. However, Hernandez was pulled from the event due to injury and was replaced by Brendan Allen at UFC Fight Night 192. Hernandez was scheduled to face Dustin Stoltzfus on December 18, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 199. However, Hernandez withdrew from the event due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by newcomer Caio Borralho. Hernandez was scheduled to face Albert Duraev on April 9, 2022, at UFC 273. However, due to a rib injury, Duraev was pull from the event and he was replaced by Dricus du Plessis. Du Plessis was eventually moved to another matchup on the card and Hernandez was instead booked against Josh Fremd. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Hernandez faced Marc-André Barriault on September 17, 2022 at UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song. He won the fight via a submission in round three. Hernandez faced Edmen Shahbazyan on May 20, 2023 at

UFC Fight Night 223 ''UFC Fight Night 223'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN+ 81'') is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will take place on April 29, 2023, at TBD venue and location. Background A lightweight bou ...

. He won the fight via technical knockout in round three. Hernandez was scheduled to face

Chris Curtis Chris Curtis (born Christopher Crummey; 26 August 1941 – 28 February 2005) was an English drummer and singer who was best known for being with the 1960s Beat music, beat band The Searchers (band), The Searchers. He originated the concept be ...

UFC Fight Night 227 ''UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 227'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 85'' and ''Noche UFC'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 16, 2023, at th ...

on September 16, 2023. However, Curtis withdrew due to a rib injury and was replaced by

Roman Kopylov Roman Kopylov (born 4 May 1991) is a Russian mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Roman Kopylov was born in Shchebzavod, a small village in the Kemerovo region of Russia ...

. In turn, Hernandez pulled out of the bout due to a torn ligament and was replaced by Josh Fremd. Hernandez was scheduled to face

Ikram Aliskerov Ikram Aliskerov ( lez, Икрам Сабиран хва Алискеррин) (russian: Икрам Сабирович Алискеров; born December 7, 1992) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo competitor who competes in the ...

on February 17, 2024, at

UFC 298 ''UFC 298: Volkanovski vs. Topuria'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 17, 2024, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, United States. Background The event marked th ...

. However Aliskerov withdrew due to compilations related to illness and was replaced by

. In a competitive bout, Hernandez won by a rear-naked choke submission in the second round. This fight earned him another '' Performance of the Night'' award. Hernandez was scheduled to face

Roman Dolidze Roman Dolidze (born July 15, 1988) is a Georgian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2016, Dolidze was the former World Warriors Fig ...

on June 1, 2024 at

UFC 302 ''UFC 302: Makhachev vs. Poirier'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 1, 2024, at the Prudential Center, in Newark, New Jersey, United States. Background The event marked the ...

. However Hernandez was forced out of the bout due to a torn ligament in his hand. Hernandez was scheduled to face Michel Pereira on September 14, 2024 at

UFC 306 ''UFC 306: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili'' (branded as ''Riyadh Season Noche UFC'' for sponsorship reasons) is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will take place on September 14, 2024, at the Spher ...

. However, the bout was rescheduled to October 19, 2024 to serve as the main event at UFC Fight Night 245.

Personal life

Hernandez has four children.

Championships and accomplishments

* Ultimate Fighting Championship ** Performance of the Night (Two times) ***2021 Half-Year Awards: Biggest Upset of the 1HY * Legacy Fighting Alliance ** LFA Middleweight Championship *Cageside Press **2021 Submission of the Year vs. Rodolfo Vieira *Jitsmagazine **2021 MMA Submission of the Year vs. Rodolfo Vieira *Combat Press **2021 MMA Submission of the Year vs. Rodolfo Vieira

Mixed martial arts record

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, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 (1) , Edmen Shahbazyan , TKO (elbows and punches) , UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Hill , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:01 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 (1) , Marc-André Barriault , Technical submission (arm-triangle choke) , UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Song , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:53 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 (1) , Josh Fremd , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 273 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Jacksonville, Florida, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 (1) , Rodolfo Vieira , Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC 258 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:53 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–2 (1) , Kevin Holland , TKO (knees and punches) , UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:39 , Jacksonville, Florida, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 (1) , Park Jun-yong , Submission (anaconda choke) , UFC Fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:39 , Shenzhen, China , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–1 (1) , Markus Perez , Submission (anaconda choke) , UFC Fight Night: Assunção vs. Moraes 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:07 ,

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, Brazil , , - , NC , align=center, 6–0 (1) , Jordan Wright , NC (overturned) , Dana White's Contender Series 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:40 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Brendan Allen , Decision (unanimous) , LFA 32 , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 , Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Mike Persons , Submission (guillotine choke) , GKO 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:54 , Jackson, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Jumoke Hunter , Submission (guillotine choke) , GKO 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:09 , Jackson, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Preston Snook , Submission (guillotine choke) , GKO 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:09 , Jackson, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Kenny Ento , Submission (guillotine choke) , GKO 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:30 , Jackson, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Trey Williams , KO (punch) , West Coast FC 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:51 , Sacramento, California, United States , , -

Amateur mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Eric Smith , Submission (armbar) , West Coast FC 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:43 , Sacramento, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–1 , Justin Jones , Submission (rear-naked choke) , KOTC: Fighting Legends , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:42 , Sacramento, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Matt Wilson , TKO (punches) , West Coast FC 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A , Sacramento, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Blake Smee , TKO (punches) , Ultimate Reno Combat 35 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:11 , Reno, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6-0 , Randall Wallace , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Ultimate Reno Combat 33 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:48 , Reno, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Sean Nelson , DQ , Dawgs of War 06/22/12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 , Roseville, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Albert Townsend , Submission (triangle choke) , Ultimate Reno Combat: Fight Factory at the Knit 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:01 , Reno, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Jeremiah Johnson , TKO (punches) , Battle of the Titans II , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:23 ,

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, United States , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Anthony American male mixed martial artists 1993 births Living people Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from Yolo County, California Mixed martial artists from California 21st-century American sportsmen