Now on a three-fight win streak, he faced off against Brazilian veteran Carloes Diego Ferreira at Noche UFC in San Antonio, Texas on Saturday.

ROUND 1: Ferreira came out and immediately put the pressure on the historically fragile Hernandez. However, the American was doing a good job of circling and timing his shots to Ferreira’s forward movement, tagging him with a solid straight. Hernandez’s movement didn’t discourage Ferreira from keeping to apply his forward pressure. Though there might not have been much to score in this opening, activity was definitely on Ferreira’s side.

ROUND 2: Right as the second round started, Hernandez threw a body kick, but poked Ferreira in the eye while posting with his left hand. The action resumed not long after. Hernandez was still circling around like he was doing in the first round, waiting for his opening to land a big shot. That opportunity finally presented itself as Hernandez caught Ferreira coming in with a big right hand that floored him. The American’s vicious ground-and-pound paired with a late stoppage by the referee combined for a big hemotama on the left side of Ferreira’s forehead.

After juggling wins and losses for half a decade, Alexander Hernandez seems to finally be putting it together and is now on a 4-fight win streak. After hinting at squeezing another fight before the end of the calendar year, we’ll see what the 32-year-old does with this newfound momentum.

Official Result: Alexander Hernandez def. Diego Ferreira by Knockout (Round 2, 3:46)

The post Alexander Hernandez Keeps Momentum Going, Wins Fourth Straight Fight appeared first on Cageside Press.

Days out from the event, the card has lost two key fights. Lightweights King Green and Carlos Diego Ferreira will not be competing as planned, while the TUF 33 welterweight finale between Rodrigo Sezinando and Daniil Donchenko is also off.

In both cases, injury is to blame. ThinkerBoxing was first to report the TUF 33 bout cancelation. Ferreira, meanwhile, notified BJPenn.com that his bout had been scrapped. An injury to Green appears to be the culprit.

The UFC subsequently updated the event’s official fight card on their website to reflect the changes.

Per a report by MMA Fighting, the plan is to shift the TUF 33 finale between Sezinando and Donchenko to the Noche UFC card in San Antonio, Texas next month.

The bouts falling through might explain why a last minute bout was booked for a Contender Series winner who captured a UFC contract just days ago.

UFC 319 is headlined by middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis, looking to defend his title against the formidable, undefeated Khamzat Chimaev. Bellator star Aaron Pico makes his octagon debut in the co-main event, facing the unbeaten Lerone Murphy in featherweight action.

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At 40, Diego Ferreira was still finding success in the cage, with the Brazilian coming off back-to-back wins over Michael Johnson and Mateusz Rebecki. Dawson, a decade younger, had also won two straight to start the night.

Both fighters came out in the orthodox stance with Dawson throwing a wheel kick that partially connected. Dawson pressed forward and shot in for a takedown around the three minute mark of the opening round. Ferreira tried to stand but Dawson was in full control with a bodylock against the fence. Dawson threw a head kick while holding Ferreira’s leg, landing a clean shot while attempting another takedown. Dawson landed three takedowns on five attempts through the first five minutes.

Ferreira showed little to no offense in the first round, but looked to turn the tide in the second. Immediately Ferreira charged forward throwing wild hooks to the head of Dawson. Both fighters exchanged against the fence before Ferreira was able to get the fight to the ground momentarily. Dawson reversed position and ended up on top in full guard. Remaining in top control Dawson was able to land short elbows and light punches to sway the round in his favor.

In the opening moments of the third both fighters collided going for takedowns, getting into a brief grappling exchange before Dawson found his way on top. Again the fight hit the mat in the full guard position with Dawson landing small hammer fists. Referee Frank Trigg stood the fight up and Dawson scored a knockdown with a big right hand. Ferreira popped back up to his feet and returned fire with each fighter landing significant punches. Dawson dug deep and again found a takedown, dumping the longtime UFC veteran on his back. Showing impressive control throughout the contest, Dawson remained on top until the final bell.

With the fight going the distance Dawson was awarded a unanimous decision victory on all three judges scorecards. With Dawson’s only loss coming against Bobby Green in 2023, the young prospect has since rallied with three consecutive wins. Dawson respectfully called for a fight against another UFC veteran in Beneil Dariush, after Dariush was pulled from the UFC 311 card due to the main event change. Asking for a contest in Florida later this spring, Dawson may see himself inside the top fifteen in short order.

Official Result: Grant Dawson def. Carlos Diego Ferreira by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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The key to getting better at his current age? Ferreira says it has to do with finally eating right.

“My last loss was more about my diet. I think the way that I was being and trying to adapt that into me cutting the weight was too drastic,” he explained. “Trying to look full, but being weak at the same time. I think it took me a while to understand – took me a while to prepare my body.”

The Brazilian now walks around between 170lbs and 168lbs in order to make the weight cuts easier. Not only has it made that part of his game easier, but now he’s been able to train harder in the lead up.

“I don’t have to drastically cut weight [anymore],” he said. “Now I can prepare myself for the performance. Having more fuel, being more mentally prepared – because before I was just draining cutting weight. Now I can actually enjoy the camp.”

Those gains have translated to the cage as well. Not only does he have the aformentioned victories and bonuses under his belt, but he’s also having more fun. That fun allows him to let loose and put on the best version of himself, even as he cracks 40 years old.

“That’s why I don’t feel much pressure [anymore]. Like ‘I need to make weight’, ‘I need to do this’. Now I enjoy more,” he said. “I feel more enjoyment in the fight. I love to fight, I always do… but now I feel more happy in the cage.”

You can catch the 40-year old Ferreira for the first time at UFC 311 this Saturday. He faces Grant Dawson as part of the prelims which will air on ESPN+.

You can hear the entire audio of this interveiw below at 2:09.

The post UFC 311’s Diego Ferreira: Getting Better at 40 Years Young appeared first on Cageside Press.

Derrick Lewis

The UFC’s all-time knockout record holder showed that he has more left in the tank at 39 years old by knocking out Rodrigo Nascimiento in the third round after losing the first two. Lewis is currently ranked twelfth at heavyweight but will move up when the rankings update.

The man he should fight next currently sits one spot above him. Jairzinho Rozenstruik is a similar fighter to Lewis in a lot of ways, a massive figure who has some of the best knockout power in the division, but lacks depth in certain skills, like wrestling. Fans have wanted to see the two fight for a few years, but now that they are both coming off a win it is the perfect time.

Lewis’ Next Fight: Jairzinho Rozenstruik

Joaquin Buckley

By extending his win streak to four fights, making him 4-0 as a welterweight, Joaquin Buckley is a legitimate danger to top 15 170-lbers. No ranked welterweights are currently scheduled to fight (except Kevin Holland, for a fight in the weight class above) so the options are wide open for the St. Louis native.

One matchup which would be electric is Buckley against Geoff Neal. Neal is on a two-fight losing streak after facing two of the best prospects in the division, but he would be a real test for Buckley, better than anyone he has fought so far at welterweight. The pair both have some of the heaviest hands in the division as well, and leave it all on the line, which will make for an excellent brawl.

Buckley’s Next Fight: vs Geoff Neal

Carlos Ulberg

City Kickboxing’s Carlos Ulberg got the biggest win of his career when he put the lights out of an onrushing Alonzo Menifield in UFC St. Louis’ featured bout. The Kiwi will presumably take Menifield’s eleventh rank in the light-heavyweight division, and with a five-fight knockout streak and six-fight winning streak he will be looking to face another higher ranked opponent next.

Anthony Smith sits at tenth in the rankings. Although he won his last fight impressively, he is still 2-3 in his last five fights, and should still have to fight a contender ranked slightly below him, though not out of the rankings entirely. With almost sixty pro fights to his name, Smith will be by far the most experienced opponent Carlos has fought, and will not hand him a knockout on a silver platter like Menifield did.

Ulberg’s Next Fight: vs Anthony Smith

Carlos Diego Ferreira

One of Brazil’s most unheralded talents got a big win at UFC St. Louis by stopping up-and-comer Mateusz Rebecki in the third round. At age thirty-nine it is super impressive to halt a sixteen fight winning streak like that. That, along with his ‘Knockout of the Year’ candidate last year that also earned him a $50,000 bonus, should put the veteran in position for a good opponent next.

Drakkar Klose has the best win streak of any unranked UFC lightweight right now. For him, getting a win over a former ranked contender would be just the accolade that would get him a fight against a current contender. Both men are well-rounded and experience; this fight would show high-level skills in all facets of MMA.

Ferreira’s Next Fight: Drakkar Klose

Sean Woodson

The tallest featherweight in the UFC scraped by veteran Alex Caceres with a decision win on Saturday. Woodson has now not lost in his last six outings. Although two of those were split decision wins and one was a draw, it is still an impressive run.

The perfect opponent for Sean will be decided this week. Unranked featherweight Lerone Murphy takes on a legend, eleventh ranked Edson Barboza, in the UFC Apex event this Saturday. The loser of that fight will have to face someone below them, which is just the sort of opportunity Woodson deserves.

Woodson’s Next Fight: Loser of Barboza/Murphy

Waldo Cortes-Acosta

The boss may not have been impressed with Waldo’s decision victory over Olympian Robelis Despaigne to open the UFC St. Louis card, but he is nonetheless on a three-fight winning streak now. With a 5-1 record in a shallow heavyweight division, it may be time for the Dominican to dip his toes into the top-fifteen.

If he is to face a ranked foe, what better opponent than #15, the man who lost in this very card’s main event? Rodrigo Nascimiento would test Waldo’s defensive grappling, something he has not had to show much in his UFC fights thus far.

Cortes-Acosta’s Next Fight: Rodrigo Nascimiento 

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The back-and-forth welterweight affair arrived early at the Enterprise Center, nestled on a preliminary card that saw its first four fights go the distance. There were no complaints about the lack of a finish in Goff versus Waters, however, given both men threw everything but the kitchen sink at each other in an attempt to finish. Much to the appreciation of the St. Louis crowd.

Goff came out strong in the opening round, while Waters appeared to find a second wind towards the end of the frame. Coming out of the first five minutes, it was clear the bout would be an early contender for Fight of the Night, and that is exactly what it turned out to be. Hard hitting, in your face action played out over three rounds; After 15 minutes were in the books it was Trey Waters with the unanimous decision win.

Both men pocket an extra $50,000 for their efforts on top of their purse, outfitting pay, etc.

Performance of the Night bonuses at UFC St. Louis were awarded to New Zealand’s Carlos Ulberg and Carlos Diego Ferreira. Brazil’s Diego Ferreira weathered an early storm from the surging Mateusz Rebecki, then began piecing his opponent up. With Rebecki tough-as-nails, it took until late in the third round for Ferreira to finally finish the fight, via TKO. Rebecki was swollen and bloodied by the end.

Ulberg needed no time whatsoever to end the night of Alonzo Menifield. With Menifield bullrushing the City Kickboxing standout, “Black Jag” unleashed a hook that put the American on skates. When all was said and done, the fight was over in just twelve seconds.

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Lightweight Diego Ferriera had shared the cage with the likes of Dustin Poirier, Anthony Pettis, Mateusz Gamrot and others.

Rebecki opened the fight swinging, landing a big left hand on Ferreira early and earning some respect no doubt in the process. Rebecki added an inside leg kick, while Ferreira showed some stance switches and circled on the outside. With just over a minute in the round, Rebecki put Diego Ferreira on the canvas with a solid left hand. The Polish up-and-comer got on top, but had to contend with the black belt prowess of Ferreira.

Early in the second, it was Ferreira attacking with a leg kick, while Rebecki answered back with a hook. Inside of a minute, Rebecki shot into a takedown, and went to work on top. Diego Ferreira was active off his back and eventually pushed Rebecki off with an upkick. More trading in the feet gave way to another Rebecki takedown attempt, only this one was stuffed. As the round wore on, Ferreira appeared a step ahead, landing repeatedly with the hands and firing a kick upstairs. Rebecki was soon showing damage around the right eye, with the ref calling time to allow a doctor to check on it. The doc clearing Mateusz Rebecki to continue, they got back underway with Rebecki capitalizing on the momentum-killing pause to land a takedown.

Ferreira, however, was not accepting the position and instead reversed and go on top, hunting an arm-triangle choke as the seconds ticked away.

Round three arrived with Diego Ferreira looking to keep the pressure up. Just past a minute in, the Brazilian wobbled Rebecki, who refused to go away and fired back with leg kicks. Two minutes in, and Rebecki landed a double-leg takedown, but Ferreira was back up to his feet seconds later. And dressed back down again, only to reverse, move to side control, and mount with just under half the round still on the clock.

Rebecki would rather implausibly survive, but in the dying seconds of the round found himself on his back eating ground n’ pound again. That was enough for the ref, who waved things off with nine seconds remaining, handing Carlos Deigo Ferreira the TKO victory.

Official Result: Carlos Diego Ferreira def. Mateusz Rebecki by TKO, Round 3, 4:51

The post UFC St. Louis: Carlos Diego Ferreira Weathers Early Storm, Stops Mateusz Rębecki Late appeared first on Cageside Press.

In the lead up to the bout, fans speculated whether Dern’s head was fully in this fight, as at Media Day she openly spoke about issues in her personal life that have affected her. Despite that, she came into the Octagon on Saturday and put on a career best performance, showing clear improvements.

Let’s take a look at what could be next for the main card winners.

Mackenzie Dern

The aforementioned victor, Dern, put on her best performance under the UFC banner yet. This fight with Hill was originally scheduled for the UFC Charlotte card a week prior, but due to the lacklustre quality of this past weekend’s card, it was bumped to main event when Irene Aldana was shifted to UFC 289.

The fans were the beneficiaries of the late notice bump to main event, as these two women put on a five round brawl. Mackenzie Dern has always been a fighter with clear skills in certain areas, but fans had concerns with how well rounded she could be. She answered those questions against Angela Hill as she began to show clear improvements in her game.

The BJJ black-belt has always been one of the most feared women in terms of her submission threat, but in the past when she has had control on the mat, she hasn’t done much with it. Against Hill though, she showcased her brutal ground-and-pound, making her even more feared on the ground.

After her tremendous performance, she took the chance to call out Rose Namajunas, and I for one would love to see that fight.

Dern’s Next Fight: Rose Namajunas

Anthony Hernandez

Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez had to weather a predictable early storm from Edmen Shahbazyan in the co-main event.

During his professional career, “The Golden Boy” has picked up nine first round stoppages, and it was clear that in this fight he was trying to get his tenth. Despite that, Hernandez weathered the storm and made it into round two having eaten some of Edmen’s big shots.

In round two, the 29-year-old began to pick up the pace and started to make it difficult for Shahbazyan to continue his momentum and pace. Round three was a similar story, but this time, Shahbazyan couldn’t quite make it out of the round with Hernandez picking up his fourth win in a row. This marked consecutive fights that Hernandez has found the third round finish.

Someone who has almost become a gatekeeper for the top 15 of the middleweight division is Gerald Meerschaert. This is a fight that could make sense for “Fluffy” and his climb into the rankings.

Hernandez’s Next Fight: Gerald Meerschaert 

Lupita Godinez

“Loopy” Godinez returned to the win column this weekend with her win over Emily Ducote.

Picking up back-to-back wins for the second time in her UFC tenure, the former LFA strawweight champion will look to fight close to the rankings in her next outing. She showcased a well rounded game-plan against Ducote, stuffing all four of Ducote’s takedown attempts and out landing her on the feet.

Someone who is currently occupying a ranked spot but is on a losing skid, is Michelle Waterson-Gomez. It could be time for the “Karate Hottie” to once again defend her ranking.

Godinez’s Next Fight: Michelle Waterson-Gomez  

Joaquin Buckley

In a night where vicious knockouts became the norm, Joaquin Buckley added yet another to his highlight-reel.

Coming into return to the welterweight division, Buckley looked to be in the best shape of his career, and that became evident throughout the fight. Buckley’s speed and power was clearly far superior to Fialho’s, but the Portuguese tried to maintain his composure and stay in the fight.

With just 45 seconds left of round two, “New Mansa” landed a huge left high kick, putting Fialho to sleep. Buckley snapped his two fight loss streak and emerged into the welterweight division as an instant problem.

A fight between Buckley and Khaos Williams could be a certified banger.

Buckey’s next fight: Khaos Williams

Diego Ferreira

Another terrifying knockout scored this weekend was Diego Ferreira’s over Michael Johnson. The Brazilian caught “The Menace” with a huge overhand right, instantly putting Johnson’s lights out.

This marked Ferreira’s first fight in two years with his next move being slightly unpredictable due to him having previously spoken about retirement because of lingering injuries. Having said that, in his post fight interview his gloves stayed on and the word ‘retirement’ wasn’t uttered.

Despite him likely not retiring yet, due to his age and his previous concerns, it is likely he won’t be around the fight game for much longer. A fight with Clay Guida could be a fun one for them both to go out on, however, Ferreira may want to test himself against a higher calibre of opponent still.

Nasrat Haqparast could make sense if that is the case.

Ferreira’s Next Fight: Nasrat Haqparast 

The post What’s Next: UFC Vegas 73 Winners appeared first on Cageside Press.

What felt like a desperation move on the promotion’s part after the card lost Irene Aldana paid off. Dern vs. Hill was originally booked for UFC Charlotte a week ago, but bumped back with an additional two rounds tacked on. The fight turned out to be the perfect headliner, with Mackenzie Dern storming out of the gate, showing improved striking and heavy hands to compliment her world-class jiu-jitsu.

Hill, game as they come, survived a couple of near stoppages in the fight, which saw Dern win a clear decision. “So badass. I’m so glad that’s the fight we moved to the main event here tonight,” White exclaimed during Saturday’s post-fight press conference.

He also announced that Dern vs. Hill had collected Fight of the Night honors, for obvious reasons.

Performance of the Night bonuses, on a card filled with finishes, went to Carlos Diego Ferreira and Viachislav Borschev, both of whom scored thunderous knockouts on Saturday.

All four bonus winning fighters will pocket an extra $50,000 for their efforts. With the card at the Apex, no gate or attendance figures were announced.

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Despite his near .500 record, Johnson had fought a who’s who at 145 and 155lbs in his UFC run, sharing the cage with everyone from Khabib Nurmagomedov to Justin Gaethje to Nate Diaz to Josh Emmett. With wins over Edson Barboza, Tony Ferguson, and Joe Lauzon among others, “The Menace” had another tough match-up against Brazilian Ferreira, another athlete known for taking some of the toughest fights the UFC has to offer.

Johnson led the exchanges for much of the first frame, controlling the distance and creating angles to land damaging combinations to his opponent. Ferreira battled back, however, as Fortis MMA General Sayif Saud rallied his fighter, calling for quick jabs and rear right kicks.

Nearly halfway through the second round Ferreira landed a ferocious overhand right, connecting cleanly across the jaw of his opponent and sending Johnson crashing to the canvas. Out cold.

DIEGO FERREIRA SLEPT HIM 😱 #UFCVegas73 pic.twitter.com/OhiPMr1oaq

— UFC (@ufc) May 20, 2023

Ferreira gets back into the win column with a highlight reel knockout, ending a three-fight skid in his first bout since December of 2021.

Michael Johnson’s momentum comes to an abrupt halt, as he’ll look to correct some aspects of his game before stepping back into the cage.

Official Result: Carlos Diego Ferreira def. Michael Johnson by KO, Round 2, 1:50

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