Ascending UFC middleweight Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez is a pretty simple dude; he likes fighting, hanging out with his family, riding dirt bikes, and very little else.
“I did that — got home, rode my bikes, chillin’, and got right back to work,” said Hernandez when asked if he followed through on his stated plans following his win over Brendan Allen earlier this year in Seattle, a victory that extended his winning streak to seven and elevated him into the Top 10 of the 185-pound weight class. “I was back in the gym the same week; there’s always s*** to work on.
“I had to let my ribs heal a little bit, so I couldn’t go live, but I’ve been good, man; can’t complain.”
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The win over Allen was a representation of what makes Hernandez a dangerous and intriguing threat on the middleweight landscape. Unlike his previous four fights, the NorCal native wasn’t able to put away his LFA rival inside the distance, however, his bottomless gas tank, unrelenting pressure, and proven grit helped carry him through the close moments to where he came out ahead on all three scorecards.
While his finishes of Rodolfo Vieira and Roman Kopylov or his main event dismantling of Michel Pereira ring out as the most recognizable of his efforts to date inside the Octagon, grinding out a quality win over a game fighter in a comparable position like Allen actually sends a louder message to the rest of the division than any of his previous victories.
And given the current complexion of the division, it’s an effort that likely contributed to Hernandez’ next appearance coming against fellow ascending middleweight Roman Dolidze, and not one of the more established contenders stationed ahead of each of them in the rankings.
“Yeah, it’s definitely a weird thing where it’s the old blood versus the new blood now,” began Hernandez, who has been steadily working forward in the division since rallying and submitting Vieira at UFC 258 in February 2021. “I feel like the old blood doesn’t want to take the fights with the new blood because they don’t want that s***; they know what’s gonna happen.
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“You can’t be one-dimensional anymore; everyone has gotten way too good.”
Whether it’s coincidence or a conscious thing, it’s hard to argue against the point Hernandez makes.
In recent months, the majority of the matchups involving ranked middleweight have either been between emerging names paired together or veterans with established track records sharing the Octagon. The one notable exception so far this year came at the start of February, when former champion Israel Adesanya faced off with Nassourdine Imavov in Saudi Arabia, where he was stopped by the Paris-based Russian 30 seconds into the second round.
While there is understandable logic to those stationed in the Top 5 aiming to compete against those positioned alongside of them in order to bolster their standing in the championship chase, there are only a finite number of Top 5 fighters to choose from.
But this isn’t new. In fact, it’s really just a microcosm of what happens in every division and every sport — every industry, really — at some point in time: eventually, the old guard is replaced by the new generation, a collection of talents that are bigger, stronger, faster, more dialed into the current way of doing things than those that came before, who ultimately will have to cede their ground.
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Even at 31, Hernandez can recognize the seismic shifts in the development of young athletes from the time he began his foray into the sport.
“You see little kids out there seven, eight and they’re competing,” he said with excitement. “Where MMA is now versus where it was 15 years ago when I started is crazy. I look forward to actually being a fan when I retire, sitting down and watching these kids.”
Wait — what? Anthony Hernandez intends to be a fan when he retires? The reason the statement is confusing is because in many ways, the 31-year-old Dana White’s Contender Series graduate is an outlier in today’s hyper-online world.
At a time where athletes are focused on building their brands, operating as analysts on their own podcasts and social platforms, and having thoughts and opinions about everyone in their division and most everyone on the roster, Hernandez, by contrast, doesn’t pay much attention to the sport at all, only focusing on his next opponent when he gets their name.
And even then, the majority of the heavy lifting is left to his coaches.
“Right now there is no point,” began Hernandez, laughing when pressed about his post-retirement change of approach. “Why be a fan boy when I’m trying to be the next thing? There is no point for it.
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“Do you watch work? Do you watch people’s interviews and s***?” he asked me, a devilish smirk stretched across his face, confident that he was getting a “no” in response and riotous when it came.
“Exactly!” he bellowed. “When I’m done and it’s all said and done, I want to do my part to give back to the kids, actually help out. I wanna do something good, but we’ll figure it out when I get there. For now, it’s all violence, and taking care of my kids and enjoying them because they’re not gonna be young forever, and they already don’t want to hang out with me all the time because they’re already getting to that age.”
The proud dad lets out a quick laugh, shaking his head at a reality that is surely all too common amongst parents with kids working their way towards and through their teenage years.
While he may not be dialed into what’s happening within the division at all times or keen to discuss the results of the last card, Hernandez knows where he stands, both in terms of the current hierarchy and how his talents stack up against his contemporaries in the championship chase with him.
The thing with not being too bothered about everything going on around you is that it allows you to avoid being bogged down in the online jockeying for position and fantasy matchmaking that consumes so many both inside and outside of the sport.
Rather than shooting for the moon, all “Fluffy” has ever asked is for someone positioned ahead of him in the rankings that affords him the opportunity to earn another step forward in the middleweight title chase.
“That’s all I need,” he said happily, his criteria having been met with his forthcoming clash against Dolidze. “Get me somebody that is ahead of me that is gonna prove that I’m ready for a title and I’ll do the rest.”
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