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Cyborg's Swan Song? Rodrigues Calls Out Du Plessis

Cris Cyborg's PFL future is up in the air after a tough win, while Gregory Rodrigues calls out Dricus du Plessis after his big UFC Sacramento victory.

Cyborg's Swan Song? Rodrigues Calls Out Du Plessis

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What a weekend for fight fans! We saw some incredible action, a potential retirement fight, and a big call-out that could shake up the middleweight division. Let's dive into the latest from the world of MMA.

Cyborg's PFL Swan Song?

Cris Cyborg secured her tenth consecutive win at PFL Tampa, defeating Ketlen Vieira by unanimous decision in what was billed as her final PFL fight. It was a tough bout for Cyborg, who was bloodied but ultimately outlasted Vieira. Despite the talk of retirement, Cyborg seems to be reconsidering, even calling out Kayla Harrison after her victory. "Eight years undefeated. I'm ready for anybody. Any time, any weight," Cyborg stated, suggesting her fighting career might not be over just yet.

Rodrigues Calls Out Du Plessis

Gregory Rodrigues had a massive night at UFC Sacramento, earning a unanimous decision win over Anthony Hernandez in the main event. This victory marks his fourth straight and solidifies his position in the middleweight title conversation. Following the fight, Rodrigues wasted no time in calling out former champion Dricus du Plessis. "Dricus Du Plessis, I think that's the fight to make. It makes a lot of sense for my next battle, so I will talk to my managers, I will talk to the UFC, and we'll see what's going to happen," Rodrigues said, eyeing a significant step up in competition.

Hernandez Accuses Rodrigues of Cheating

While Gregory Rodrigues celebrated his win, his opponent Anthony Hernandez had some strong words regarding the fight. Hernandez accused Rodrigues of cheating, claiming he was grabbing inside his gloves during their Fight of the Night performance. "The more I saw him slow down I thought 'Okay, I'm gonna get him this round', I hit him a few times and rocked his s, he's a tough son of a b, -, I hit him with the kitchen sink, hit him with some elbows, but the f, was cheating and grabbing inside of my gloves," Hernandez told Bloody Elbow. He also mentioned telling Herb Dean about the alleged fouls.

Anthony Smith Breaks Silence

Anthony Smith has issued his first public statement since his arrest last month. The former UFC title challenger was charged with first-degree domestic assault and terroristic threats. While not going into specifics, Smith indicated that he plans to share his side of the story in the future. We're hearing that a statement was made by someone close to the situation, saying "There's not a lot I can say right now," leaving fans to await further details.

Sources

Every source behind today's roundup (14)

We summarize the day's news in our own words. Full credit to the outlets below for the original reporting, click through to read their work:

Open Scoring MMA is a daily AI-produced MMA and UFC news podcast. Listen to today's episode, read the full Feed, or get every episode by email.

Episode transcript

Read the full episode transcript

Welcome to Open Scoring MMA. This is episode 66 for August 23rd, 2026, your daily look at what's happening now and next across the world of MMA and UFC. DUKE: Well, what a weekend for fight fans, with two major events delivering some absolute fireworks. We've got to start with the main event out of UFC Sacramento, where Gregory Rodrigues, "Robocop," just put on a clinic, outlasting Anthony Hernandez in a brutal five-round war. NORA: He absolutely did. Rodrigues took home a unanimous decision, with scorecards of 49-46 and two 48-47s. It was a tough fight, but he really showed his grit and skill in there. DUKE: And that win, I mean, that's huge for him. It's his fourth straight, and it's definitely going to vault him up the middleweight rankings. We're talking legitimate contender status now at 185 pounds. NORA: Absolutely. He's firmly in the title mix after that performance. It was a career-defining win for him. DUKE: But here's where it gets interesting, because Anthony Hernandez, despite losing that main event, is not happy. He's calling out Rodrigues for what he claims was cheating during the fight. NORA: He is. Hernandez told Bloody Elbow, quote, "The more I saw him slow down I thought 'Okay, I'm gonna get him this round', I hit him a few times and rocked his s, he's a tough son of a b, -, I hit him with the kitchen sink, hit him with some elbows, but the f, was cheating and grabbing inside of my gloves," end quote. DUKE: Wow. That's a pretty strong accusation to make after a Fight of the Night performance. He's saying he even told Herb Dean about it. NORA: He did. He also said, quote, "I told Herb Dean that, I fight clean man, so, it is what it is, maybe I should be more dirty. Even when I fail, I don't give up, that's just in me... I'm willing to die in there for real," end quote. DUKE: That's a lot of emotion coming out of that fight. You can tell it was a grueling one for both guys. But it doesn't sound like he's going to let that go easily. NORA: No, it doesn't. It adds a layer of controversy to what was otherwise a fantastic fight. DUKE: And speaking of callouts, Rodrigues himself wasn't shy after his big win. He immediately set his sights on a former champion. NORA: He did. Rodrigues wasted no time calling out Dricus du Plessis in his post-fight interview. He told Yahoo Sports MMA, quote, "Dricus Du Plessis, I think that's the fight to make. It makes a lot of sense for my next battle, so I will talk to my managers, I will talk to the UFC, and we'll see what's going to happen," end quote. DUKE: That's a bold move, going after a former champ right after your biggest career win. It shows he's serious about making a run for the title. NORA: It does. And with his performance against Hernandez, he's certainly made a strong case for himself to get a high-profile opponent like du Plessis. DUKE: Shifting gears a little, we also saw some big action over in the PFL this weekend, with Cris Cyborg headlining PFL Tampa. And what a fight that was against Ketlen Vieira. NORA: It was a tough one for Cyborg. She got all she could handle from Vieira but ultimately pulled out a unanimous decision for her tenth straight win. DUKE: And this was initially reported as her swan song, her retirement fight. But it sounds like she's had a change of heart after that performance. NORA: She has. After the fight, Cyborg appeared ready to continue her career. She even called out Kayla Harrison, saying, quote, "Kayla Harrison is here? Come here," end quote. And she added, quote, "Eight years undefeated. I'm ready for anybody. Any time, any weight," end quote. DUKE: That's the kind of fire we love to see from a legend like Cyborg. Ten straight wins, and she's still looking for the biggest challenges out there. A fight with Kayla Harrison would be massive. NORA: It would be a huge fight. And it shows that even after such a long and dominant career, she's still motivated to compete at the highest level. DUKE: We also had another interesting story out of UFC Sacramento, with Anthony Wint submitting Terrance Chatman. But it was Wint's post-fight comments that really got people talking. NORA: He discussed Gable Steveson and Josh Hokit, and the future of the UFC heavyweight division. It's clear he's looking to make a statement and get some big names on his radar. DUKE: Yeah, he's definitely trying to put himself in that conversation. It's always good to see fighters thinking about the bigger picture and who they want to face next. NORA: It shows ambition, which is crucial in a division as competitive as heavyweight. DUKE: And speaking of big names, Islam Makhachev is still sitting pretty at the top of the pound-for-pound rankings. Unanimous number one, still. NORA: That's right. His seventeenth straight win, which was against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330, keeps him firmly atop the ESPN P4P men's top ten. DUKE: And that brings us to Dana White, who apparently went on another one of his long rants about Ian Machado Garry after that UFC 330 main event. NORA: He did. Machado Garry reportedly had a chance to win the UFC welterweight title against Islam Makhachev in the UFC 330 main event, but he came up short, and it seems Dana had a lot to say about his performance. DUKE: It's clear Dana has strong opinions on Garry, and he's not afraid to voice them, especially after a high-stakes fight like that. NORA: No, he's not. It's a recurring theme with those two. DUKE: We also need to touch on the Anthony Smith situation. He's issued his first statement since his arrest last month. NORA: He has. Smith was charged with first-degree domestic assault and terroristic threats. He told Bloody Elbow, quote, "There's not a lot I can say right now," end quote, but added that he'll be able to tell his story someday soon. DUKE: That's a tough situation, and we'll have to wait to hear his side of things. It's a serious charge, and it's definitely cast a shadow over his career. NORA: It has. It's a developing story that we'll continue to follow closely. DUKE: And in a bit of a different kind of fight news, Jordan Burroughs, the wrestling legend, made his return to the mat after a two-year layoff. NORA: He did, at RAF 12, and he absolutely dominated UFC welterweight contender Sean Brady, winning an 11-0 shutout victory. DUKE: An 11-0 shutout. That's just incredible. It shows the difference between elite-level wrestling and even a high-level MMA grappler. Burroughs just slammed Brady and stayed on the attack. NORA: It was almost a mismatch, given Burroughs' wrestling pedigree. He didn't take it easy on Brady at all. DUKE: Alright, let's look ahead to what's coming up this week. We've got Dana White's Contender Series: Season 10, Week 3, coming up this Tuesday, August the twenty-fifth. NORA: That's right. We're hearing that Alex Apodaca and Mario Piazzon are predicted to feature on a Contender Series card, though nothing official yet on this specific week. DUKE: And then just a few days later, on August the twenty-ninth, we've got UFC Fight Night: Nurmagomedov versus Song. NORA: That card reportedly features Song Yadong against Umar Nurmagomedov in the main event. DUKE: Then we roll into September with another Contender Series, Season 10, Week 4, on September the first. NORA: Word is that Adam Darby and Brandon Holmes are predicted to compete on a Contender Series card, but we'll wait and see if it's this specific week. DUKE: And then on September the fifth, we've got UFC Fight Night: Hooker versus Parnasse. NORA: Dan Hooker is reportedly being considered for the headlining spot for that event. DUKE: And then, the big one, Noche UFC: Rodriguez versus Silva, on September the twelfth. We're hearing some big names are being targeted for that event, but nothing official yet on the main and co-main matchups. DUKE: That's a lot of action coming up. But before we get there, let's talk about our OSM Pick for Noche UFC. NORA: Our model has Jean Silva to win with about a seventy-nine percent chance. DUKE: Seventy-nine percent. That's a pretty strong lean. NORA: It is. The betting line implies around seventy-five percent, so we're a bit higher than the market on Silva. DUKE: Okay, so what's driving that confidence? What are the top reasons? NORA: The model is really liking what it's seeing from Silva in terms of his overall performance lately. DUKE: So the model's really liking what it's seeing from Silva in terms of his ability to finish fights and his overall performance lately. NORA: Exactly. He's been looking incredibly sharp. DUKE: Alright, let's talk about something else that's been buzzing. The MMA community on Reddit is having a field day with some of the recent fighter callouts. NORA: They are. There's a lot of discussion about who's calling out who, and whether those fights actually make sense for the divisions. Sometimes they're spot on, and other times, well, they're just having fun with it. NORA: It's a mix. But the engagement is always high, especially when a fighter makes a bold statement or a surprising callout. DUKE: Yeah, it adds to the drama, doesn't it? Everyone loves a good beef. NORA: They do. And it keeps the conversation going between fight cards. DUKE: Alright, that's going to wrap it up for us today. Thanks for tuning in to Open Scoring MMA.

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