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UFC Vegas Sphere Event Gets Barn Burner Ranked Middleweight Fight
No. 13-ranked UFC middleweight Michel Pereira will face No. 13 Anthony Hernandez at Noche UFC 2 at the Vegas Sphere on September 14.
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Pereira announced the news on June 3. Hernandez also confirmed the fight news on the same date. The fight will make for one of the highest level fights on the card, with Pereira riding an eight fight winning streak, and Hernandez a five fight streak.
Pereira has found a surge of activity after securing one fight in 2023. He has already fought and won twice in 2024; this will be his third booking of the year. Pereira is on the hottest streak of his fighting career, with three first-round finishes back-to-back over high-tier opposition in Ihor Potieria, Michal Oleksiejczuk, and Andre Petroski.
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Hernandez is on a similar trend with one of the most impressive winning streaks at middleweight currently. It began with a submission victory over world-class BJJ practitioner Rodolfo Vieira in 2021, and most recently concluded with a submission win over the surging Roman Kopylov in February.
A decisive win for either man at the Vegas Sphere could see them springboard the rest of the rankings in their next booking, if not just a shot at the division's top 10.
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MATHEW RIDDLE
Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist and graphic designer. He joined MMAKO when it was first founded in 2023. Find his work on The Fight Fanatic & Heavy on UFC. He can be contacted on mr@thefightfanatic.com