MMA Weekly Roundup — August 24, 2026: Rodrigues Outslugs Fluffy in a Sacramento Firefight

MMA Weekly Roundup · Monday, August 24, 2026

A stoppage-drenched night in Sacramento, a veteran champion pushed to the brink in Tampa, and a September pay-per-view that quietly filled out into one of the year's best cards. Here's everything that mattered over the past seven days.

UFC Sacramento: Rodrigues Outslugs Hernandez in a 25-Minute War

Gregory Rodrigues took a unanimous decision over hometown favorite Anthony "Fluffy" Hernandez on Saturday at Golden 1 Center, with judges turning in scores of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47. The story of the fight was Rodrigues' calf kick — he went back to it again and again, and every time Hernandez loaded weight onto that lead leg it gave out beneath him. Four of the knockdowns on the night came off leg kicks alone.

It was not one-way traffic. Rodrigues looked close to a finish in the second, Hernandez wrestled his way back into control through the third, and Rodrigues found a second wind in the fourth to retake the momentum. Neither man took a backward step for 25 minutes. Full main card results are at UFC.com, and MMA Mania has the morning-after breakdown.

The card as a whole was absurd: 13 fights, 10 finishes, eight of them knockouts. Both of the other decisions were bloody brawls that went the distance. If you skipped it, go back and watch it.

De Ridder Mauls Dolidze in Light Heavyweight Return

The co-main was over almost before it started. Reinier de Ridder returned to light heavyweight and put Roman Dolidze on his back early, then landed somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 ground strikes before the referee stepped in at 4:01 of round one. It was as one-sided as a fight between two ranked men gets. Highlights here.

First-round finishes from Anthony Wint and Carli Judice set the tone earlier in the evening before de Ridder and the main event closed things out.

PFL Tampa: Cyborg Retains, Then Wonders Out Loud About What's Next

Cris Cyborg kept her PFL women's featherweight title on Saturday at Benchmark International Arena, beating Ketlen Vieira by unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 49-46) in the first defense of that belt. It was her tenth straight MMA win.

There was a wrinkle: Vieira missed badly on the scale, which made her ineligible to win the title even with a victory. The bout went ahead as a non-title fight for her. Cyborg was pushed harder than expected and spoke afterward about being uncertain of her fighting future — worth noting rather than over-reading. Sherdog has more on that.

UFC 331 Main Card Locks In

The September 19 card at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles came into focus this week. Joshua Van defends the flyweight title in a rematch with Alexandre Pantoja — Van took the belt at UFC 323 when an injury ended their first meeting 26 seconds in, so there is a great deal left unsettled between them.

The co-main is a five-round lightweight title eliminator between Arman Tsarukyan and Mauricio Ruffy, with the winner expected to challenge champion Justin Gaethje. Elsewhere on the main card, Patricio Pitbull meets Doo Ho Choi, and Brian Ortega and Renato Moicano finally get their rescheduled bout after Ortega withdrew from the original booking earlier this year. Forbes has the full main card.

Signings and Roster Moves

Italian prospect Francesco Nuzzi signed with the UFC on August 19 and was immediately booked for UFC Shanghai on August 29 — a ten-day turnaround. He arrives from Cage Warriors off a first-round win.

Delphine Benouaich also joined the roster and is set for September 5 at Accor Arena in Paris, facing Sofia Montenegro at women's strawweight. Fightomic tracks the week's newly booked fights.

Looking Ahead: UFC Shanghai, August 29

The UFC returns to Shanghai Indoor Stadium this Saturday with a bantamweight main event between Umar Nurmagomedov and Song Yadong. Nurmagomedov opened as a sizable favorite when early odds hit this week.

The rest of the announced main card is strong: Yan Xiaonan vs. Denise Gomes at women's strawweight, Alex Perez vs. Sumudaerji at flyweight, and Aoriqileng vs. Kai Asakura. Note the start time — prelims go at 3 a.m. ET on Paramount+ with the main card at 6 a.m. ET. Set an alarm or accept your fate on the timeline. Full card details.

Sources

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