Anthony Hernandez plans to ‘keep climbing ladder,’ get rebooked with Middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis

Alexander Behunin specializes in running MMAmania.com's various social media accounts, as well as covering live UFC events, interviewing the sports biggest stars and personalities.

“Fluffy” has Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) gold in sight.

Anthony Hernandez notched his first-ever UFC main event win at UFC Vegas 99 last night (Sat., Oct. 19, 2024), mauling Michel Pereira to eventually score a fifth round technical knockout from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada (watch highlights).

In the process, “Fluffy” snapped Pereira’s ridiculous eight-fight win streak.

Hernandez never calls out opponents after his wins. And that’s not because he’s trying to be respectful, but he simply doesn’t watch the sport and doesn’t know anyone in the Top 15 rankings. However, the 31-year-old does know who the champion currently is and he believes Dricus Du Plessis is the only 185-pound athlete who can keep his insane pace.

“I think [what] would be a great fight realistically and who mixes it up really well would be Du Plessis,” Hernandez told MMAmania.com in UFC Vegas 99’s post-fight press conference (watch here). “He mixes it very f—king well, and that’s why he’s champion right now. He’s just a tough motherf—ker, and he goes.

“He looks like he’s gassed, and he keeps pushing,” Hernandez continued. “I’d love to fight him. I’m just going to keep climbing the ladder so I can get to him. Great job to him. Keep up the great work, man.”

Believe it or not, Hernandez vs. Du Plessis was supposed to happen at UFC 273; however, a few weeks after the pair were scheduled to fight, they were rebooked against different opponents. Indeed, Du Plessis was booked against Kelvin Gastelum (the fight ultimately got canceled), and Hernandez ended up fighting a debuting Josh Fremd.

Obviously, “Fluffy” will not get Du Plessis next ... and he knows it.

“Hopefully [I get a No. 1 contender fight next], but probably not,” Hernandez said. “There are guys ahead of me. I’m not stupid. I know how this sh-t works. It’s all about timing and sh-t. I’m just going to keep doing what I do. I’m going to stay ready, and when my time comes, I’m going to show the f—k out, and I’ll get it eventually.”

With the Middleweight division absolutely clogged up at the moment, it's safe to say Hernandez will have to keep grinding. He can rematch Brendan Allen (they fought back in Legacy Fighting Alliance in 2018) or fight former title challenger Jared Cannonier.

For what it’s worth, Hernandez also told MMAmania.com that he welcomes a fight with former UFC Middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya.

For complete UFC Vegas 99 results, coverage and highlights, click HERE.