Gregory Rodrigues must now be included in the conversation for marquee middleweight fights after he got the better of Anthony Hernandez in Saturday's UFC Fight Night 285 main event.
Rodrigues (20-6 MMA, 11-3 UFC) extended his winning streak to four fights with a unanimous decision win over Hernandez (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif., and now the fights are only going to get bigger.
After some stumbles earlier in his promotional tenure, Rodrigues has seemingly now found his prime form at 34 years old, and if he's going to make a run for the title, it has to be now. He's still a few steps away, but it's a better position than he's ever been in before.
"RoboCop" used his post-fight microphone time to call out former 185-pound champion Dricus Du Plessis (24-3 MMA, 10-1 UFC), and that's no doubt the right name to chase. According to sources, the UFC indeed had an appetite for that matchup earlier this year, but ultimately opted to go in different directions with Rodrigues against Hernandez and Du Plessis against Kamaru Usman, whom he beat in a July main event.
With both men getting their hands raised, it wouldn't be a terrible pairing next. However, it feels unlikely that Du Plessis is going to be keen on the matchup and would surely instead prefer a title fight or bigger name. UFC could give him no choice, but if it doesn't happen, it's not as if Rodrigues is dry on options.
Names like Joe Pyfer (16-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC) and Brendan Allen (27-7 MMA, 15-4 UFC) also hold prominent spots in the rankings and would represent advancement for Rodrigues in the division, while also being fitting tests on both ends.
Whether it's Du Plessis, Pyfer or Allen, it would be a beneficial opportunity for Rodrigues, who should be champing at the bit for any of those names.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Mick Maynard's Shoes: What's next for Gregory Rodrigues after UFC Sacramento win?
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