Anthony Hernandez NEEDS To Fight For MW Title

[Tapatio]

Pure domination. Just ran over Dildoze and made him quit. He might as well fly over to Georgia and take that cheating whore of a side piece Cheyenne Buys for himself.

Fluffy's cardio is right up there with Merab. Just unbelievable how in shape that guy is. Future champ!

 

[Rorschachxx]

Dark horse of the division. One of my favorite fighters to watch currently. His absolute whooping of Michel Pereira was one of my favorite performances in recent memory.

He's earned himself a number one contender fight. MMA fans are back to gobling Costas dick after going to decision with Kopylov when Hernandez finished him inside two rounds.

Dude needs to get his respect and needs to get a high ranking fight. Imavov and Caio winner is most likely fighting for the title next, so I say Fluffy vs RDR is the fight to make.

 

[Petarito]

He always impresses, but never gets much attention. He's a legit contender

The issue is that he never impresses.

Vs Dolidze was a better fight, but usually he suffocates the fight. Not doing much

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

He needs an elite win - maybe fight the loser of Imamov/Caio would be best to see where he’s at.

 

[markantony20]

I don’t think he has the well roundedness to be champion just yet. Big guys like DDP and Khamzat would be heavy favourites imo.

 

[Dacha]

He has done way more than some other fighters who fought for the title.

Just saying ).

 

[KO Shotz]

He needs an elite win - maybe fight the loser of Imamov/Caio would be best to see where he’s at.

or winner of Cannonier/MVP. Or Izzy. I wouldn't mind him fighting RDR next with winner getting the next crack at the title after Imavov/Caio.

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

or winner of Cannonier/MVP. Or Izzy. I wouldn't mind him fighting RDR next with winner getting the next crack at the title after Imavov/Caio.

RDR would be cool style matchup, but I don’t think we’d learn much watching him fight Izzy or MvP (they’d either KO him quick or he would grapple fuck and submit).

Cannonier is too old to be a legit title contender again, but I’d much rather see Fluffy tested against a powerful anti-wrestler then a pure striker.

 

[Portland8242]

I think Sean Strickland would be an excellent test for Fluffy to see if he's truly there. MW is a bit logjammed at the moment but he's fully in position for a clear cut #1 contender fight, only 1 more.

 

[KO Shotz]

RDR would be cool style matchup, but I don’t think we’d learn much watching him fight Izzy or MvP (they’d either KO him quick or he would grapple fuck and submit).

Cannonier is too old to be a legit title contender again, but I’d much rather see Fluffy tested against a powerful anti-wrestler then a pure striker.

Imo if Fluffy can't beat Izzy, MVP, or Cannonier then he shouldn't be in title contention. However, I think Hernandez can beat them.

 

[JoeRowe]

Your reasoning isn't flawed, but you gotta remember that Imavov got into the title mix by beating Izzy. Caio by beating Cannonier. Chimaev & RDR beating Whittaker. Most of the time guys get in line for a title shot by beating big names. Hernandez is coming off of wins against Dolidze & Allen. Those names don't back the hype for Anthony getting a title shot unfortunately.

Why does beating 40 year old Cannonier 2 months after Imavov finished him give Caio hype? Who has Cannonier beaten that puts him in the same sentence as Izzy & Whittaker?

 

[RockyLockridge]

He'll be the one to beat dricus, if anyone.

I think Dricus will beat Caio or nassordine. It's RDR or Fluffy he'll have more trouble with

Why does beating 40 year old Cannonier 2 months after Imavov finished him give Caio hype? Who has Cannonier beaten that puts him in the same sentence as Izzy & Whittaker?

sean strickland, whom izzy could not beat

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

Imo if Fluffy can't beat Izzy, MVP, or Cannonier then he shouldn't be in title contention. However, I think Hernandez can beat them.

None of those guys are contenders though, so why waste another fight on a guy that is on an 8 fight winning streak?

Give him a real contender so if he wins he can fight for the title.

 

[KO Shotz]

Why does beating 40 year old Cannonier 2 months after Imavov finished him give Caio hype? Who has Cannonier beaten that puts him in the same sentence as Izzy & Whittaker?

Because Cannonier has experience. Just like how Paddy beating Michael Chandler means something. Izzy & Whittaker aren't the gold standard of the division anymore but by beating them it holds weight towards someone being acknowledged as good enough to compete at a high level.

 

[KO Shotz]

None of those guys are contenders though, so why waste another fight on a guy that is on an 8 fight winning streak?

Give him a real contender so if he wins he can fight for the title.

Because like Caio, Fluffy is simply a prospect in the division. By beating guys whose names mean something based off what they have accomplished & the experience they have to on paper goes a long way. That's why the unofficial role in a division of "gatekeeper" is important to some. If prospects can get thru a gatekeeper then they are deemed worthy of being at the top of the division.

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

Because like Caio, Fluffy is simply a prospect in the division. By beating guys whose names mean something based off what they have accomplished & the experience they have to on paper goes a long way. That's why the unofficial role in a division of "gatekeeper" is important to some. If prospects can get thru a gatekeeper then they are deemed worthy of being at the top of the division.

The division is lined up already - DDP vs. Khamzhat for the title, Caio vs. Nassordine for the #1 contender.

Fluffy is beyond a "prospect" at this point - he's on an 8-fight win streak and already top 10, so it seems kind of pointless to make him fight a "gatekeeper" fight just to give him some name value. I'd much rather see Fluffy fight RDR (another streaking contender) or even Strickland, at which point a win makes him the next contender after Caio/Nassordine.

Just from a booking/logistics stand-point:

DDP/Khamzhat is this weekend (middle of August)
Caio/Nassordine is in one month (start of September)

Winner vs. Winner fights at the end of the year, at which point there is no one next in line to fight for the title, so they need to line someone up and RDR vs. Fluffy makes the most sense and stylistically is the most compelling. They can do that fight towards the end of this year and then the next title fight is all lined up for late spring/early summer next year.

Beating a 38-year old MvP (2-1 all decisions since his UFC debut) or a 42-year old Cannonier (2-2 in his last 4 / 3-3 in his last 6) or a 36-year old Izzy on a 3-fight losing streak doesn't mean that much outside of the name value. To get a title fight you should beat another streaking contender or a guy that just fought for the title like Strickland at minimum.

If he beats a "gatekeeper" then he still needs to fight a top contender, at which point he'd be on a 10-fight win streak....I think we can just skip the gatekeeper fight and give him the top contender at this stage of his career/the run he's on. RDR got Whittaker off of beating Bo Nickal, match-making doesn't need to always be a perfect science, sometimes it's about what the division needs/who is available/where guys are at in their career.

 

[KO Shotz]

The division is lined up already - DDP vs. Khamzhat for the title, Caio vs. Nassordine for the #1 contender.

Fluffy is beyond a "prospect" at this point - he's on an 8-fight win streak and already top 10, so it seems kind of pointless to make him fight a "gatekeeper" fight just to give him some name value. I'd much rather see Fluffy fight RDR (another streaking contender) or even Strickland, at which point a win makes him the next contender after Caio/Nassordine.

Just from a booking/logistics stand-point:

DDP/Khamzhat is this weekend (middle of August)
Caio/Nassordine is in one month (start of September)

Winner vs. Winner fights at the end of the year, at which point there is no one next in line to fight for the title, so they need to line someone up and RDR vs. Fluffy makes the most sense and stylistically is the most compelling. They can do that fight towards the end of this year and then the next title fight is all lined up for late spring/early summer next year.

Beating a 38-year old MvP (2-1 all decisions since his UFC debut) or a 42-year old Cannonier (2-2 in his last 4 / 3-3 in his last 6) or a 36-year old Izzy on a 3-fight losing streak doesn't mean that much outside of the name value. To get a title fight you should beat another streaking contender or a guy that just fought for the title like Strickland at minimum.

If he beats a "gatekeeper" then he still needs to fight a top contender, at which point he'd be on a 10-fight win streak....I think we can just skip the gatekeeper fight and give him the top contender at this stage of his career/the run he's on. RDR got Whittaker off of beating Bo Nickal, match-making doesn't need to always be a perfect science, sometimes it's about what the division needs/who is available/where guys are at in their career.

I agree with most of what you're saying, & I've been saying that RDR vs Fluffy for the next title shot after Caio/Imavov is a good option as well & that I wouldn't have any problem seeing that play out. But having him fight Strickland would be pointless because Strickland is now in the same boat as the guys you mentioned in MVP, Cannonier, Rob, & Izzy. Strickland could be looked at as a gatekeeper.

But Fluffy is a prospect. Beating Dolidze & Allen isn't title shot worthy. Not just because of their name value but skill set alone.

 

[flektarn]

I like him. Don't give him Strickland. His TDD is too good and his stand-up is better. He would 50-45 fluffy, tbqh. Fluffy would have a much better chance against Izzy, RDR, whittaker.

 

[MDoza]

Crazy that MW has fallen so far..

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

I agree with most of what you're saying, & I've been saying that RDR vs Fluffy for the next title shot after Caio/Imavov is a good option as well & that I wouldn't have any problem seeing that play out. But having him fight Strickland would be pointless because Strickland is now in the same boat as the guys you mentioned in MVP, Cannonier, & Izzy. Strickland could be looked at as a gatekeeper.

But Fluffy is a prospect. Beating Dolidze & Allen isn't title shot worthy. Not just because of their name value but skill set alone.

Strickland just fought for the title and is ranked #2, so beating him means a lot more relative to rankings/the division then Izzy/MvP/Cannonier (even if skill level he might be the same). Rankings are just to manipulate perception anyways, but since Strickland has a high ranking and just fought for a title beating him would give Fluffy not only the "name" value but the ranking and perceptive value that he wouldn't get from beating Izzy/MvP/Cannonier.

Fluffy is beyond a prospect at this point - he's had a 11 fights in the UFC and is on a huge win streak. He hasn't had the chance to prove himself against an elite fighter yet, beating a gatekeeper is relatively the same thing. Brendan Allen could be considered a gatekeeper, but I guess since it's MW a lot of these guys that are fringe top-10 are borderline journeyman/gatekeepers. Bo Nickel is/was considered a prospect lol, that's a "prospect" a guy with just a few fights that hasn't fought anyone in the top 15 and no one knows too much about their ceiling.

The top of the division has been stagnant for so long that you've got Izzy on a 3-fight losing streak ranked #4 and a clearly heavily declined Rob Whittaker ranked #7. Let's just be logical with who is ahead of Fluffy in rankings and the match-ups already made:

DDP > fighting Chimaev
Strickland > unbooked
Imavov > fighting Caio
Chimaev > fighting DDP
Izzy > unbooked, needs a soft rebound fight against another striker like Strickland or MvP (even Whittaker 3)
RDR > recent split win over Whittaker, needs one more top win that is more clear cut
Caio > fighting Imavov
Whittaker > recent split loss to RDR, pretty declined and based on RDR/Chimaev fights shouldn't fight pressure grapplers
Cannonier > fighting MvP

5/9 are booked, 2 guys just recently got in a 5 round war, Izzy is there but shouldn't be fighting guys with Fluffy's style (and neither should Whittaker).

The best fights to make for Fluffy are clearly RDR or Strickland in terms of setting him up as the next contender. I'd rather see RDR for the style match-up but sometimes when there aren't a lot of contenders they don't like to waste 1 of 2 viable guys (to me no one but RDR or Fluffy are in realistic streaking contention after Caio/Imavov), so Strickland wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility and would be interesting to see from a stylistic clash.