One of three Canadian fighters on the UFC Vegas 60 card (alongside Gillian Robertson and Tanner Boser), Marc-Andre Barriault faced off with Anthony Hernandez in a middleweight contest on Saturday.
The fight kicked off the Fight Night event’s main card, taking place once again at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Hernandez immediately looked to tie things up and take the fight now, but was unable to get it there. Instead, it was Barriault landing uppercuts and knees in the clinch. The pair reversed position against the fence once or twice, then broke and moved back to range. There, it was Hernandez connecting and backing Barrialt up, but the Canadian fired back, connecting with an overhand right then working his jab. Against, Hernandez changed levels for a takedown, and this time, he landed it.
Hernandez peppered Barriault with shots, managing to control Barriault while doing so. Brriault would get back up however, connecting a couple of times before breaking. The next clinch saw Hernandez finding success, landing a knee and getting the fight down again. Barriault defended with a guillotine, but didn’t have it.
In the second, Hernandez again had the fight down early. Hernandez sat in half guard, dropping elbows, as Barriault tried to scramble to the fence. That was slow-going, as he had the weight of “Fluffy” Hernandez on him. As Barrault tried to work his way up, Hernandez pulled his legs back out from under him, but the Canadian would eventually escape. He wouldn’t stay on his feet for long. Hernandez planted him right back down, and briefly threatened to move to mount. Hernandez soon had the back, getting one hook in. He landed punches to the ear, but couldn’t put Barriault away.
During the second, Barriault had been overheard telling his corner that he’d injured his rib. He gutted that out, coming back for the third only to have Hernandez immediately on him, hunting the takedown. Hernandez then inadvertantly spiked Barriault on a takedown; the Canadian worked back up, only to be dragged down again.
Hopefully no side effects come of this. Inadvertent but nasty. #UFCVegas60 pic.twitter.com/bLdLSqZBAc
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) September 17, 2022
The grueling, exhausting fight, with Hernandez all over him, was draining Barriault. When Hernandez locked on with an arm-triangle choke, it was all over. Barriault went out rather than tap, and Hernandez had the win over a very tough Marc-Andre Barriault.
Official Result: Anthony Hernandez def. Marc-Andre Barriault by technical submission (arm-triangle choke), Round 3, 1:53
