Athletes
Alexander Hernandez Won't Be Deterred
UFC Featherweight Alexander Hernandez Has The Mindset As A Winner, All That's Left To Do Is Execute And Collect Checks.
Alexander Hernandez is no quitter. So when I ask him if he’s going to keep at this featherweight thing until he gets it right, he laughs.
“Honestly, that's the best way saying that, and that's a hundred percent it,” said Hernandez, who makes his third featherweight start this Saturday against Damon Jackson, though it won’t be an official start in the division after he missed weight on Friday, first at 150 pounds, then at 147.5 pounds. And while the former lightweight contender lost his first two trips to 145 pounds against Billy Quarantillo and Bill Algeo, he’s going to try again.
“I know there's something here and I am going to get it right,” he said. “It's hard to look forward. I almost just want to avenge either one of those fights with the Bills. But if I don't feel a distinct advantage for being at ‘45, then I won't continue to pursue it. But the way I feel right now, I think I'll have one. I'm skinny as can be, but I feel very strong and fast. I like the speed that I feel at ’45, so the ship sails in that direction.”
I tell him that there’s good news – there’s only one more Bill in the 145-pound weight class: France’s Willian Gomis. But in all seriousness, the Coloradan believes that with a few tweaks and a little luck, he’ll get it right.
“I got a couple other Bills to settle scores with,” he laughs. “Quarantillo is one of the most frustrating and course-altering fights of my career. Algeo was frustrating. In hindsight, I should have pulled out of that fight. But I worked so hard and waited so long, I just took it.”
An MCL injury slowed Hernandez down three-and-a-half weeks before the fight, but come fight time, he felt if he stuck to the game plan, he could pull out the win. One kick in, and that possibility went out the window.
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“About a week-and-a-half out, I was able to move pretty well, and I thought I could outbox this guy,” said Hernandez. “I normally do a nice blend of kicks and stuff, and I wanted to wrestle him, and then that went out the window. It was just boxing. And after throwing one kick in the fight, I was like, this leg is f**ked. So I was just trying to make do with what I could. I'm not doing that anymore. No more rolling dice on injuries for fights. I just can't afford it at this stage of my career.”
Missing weight for the fight with Jackson adds to the pressure on the shoulders of the 31-year-old, who has lost three of his last four. Mixed in with the defeats is a three-round win over Jim Miller in February of 2023, and before that, his previous two wins were knockouts of Chris Gruetzemacher and Mike Breeden, so the talent to compete at this level is obviously there. So where does he see himself at this point?
Alexander Hernandez Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2
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Alexander Hernandez Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2
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“There's a realm of reality that floats in the back of my mind that's like, obviously you can't afford to lose this fight,” he explains. “Then there’s this co-existing truth that is, you're a f**king stud. I get going to these camps and I feel as close to God as a man can. I feel untouchable. I feel great, I'm moving better, I'm improving. I made some additions in this camp with a boxing coach and I shored up some more short ends, got faster, got tighter, and everything's better than before. So let's keep getting better at executing. Let's just execute on it. Because the idea of not doing it, it's like I feel way too fucking good. I feel too physically sharp. And so it's like, man, let's go deliver on a game day because that, of course, is where we're falling short. It's often not a technical issue. It's a winning issue.”
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And that’s the dilemma isn’t it? Good camp, bad camp, favorable matchup, unfavorable matchup – it all comes down to who is “on” on fight night. Add in four-ounce gloves and a million ways to lose, and it makes for quite a mental hurdle to overcome. Some fighters never get over that hurdle. Alexander Hernandez has been there before and he’s smart enough to know what it takes to be a winner in the UFC. Now he just has to go do it.
“Let's put ourselves in the mindset of a winner,” he said. “Let's agree that we're a winner. Let's agree that we are better than this, that we're special. And you can develop that confidence in your training every day. And you're like, I'm the f**king man. So let's go execute, go get two, God willing, three nice checks, and then let's just go line it up and do it again.”
UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2 took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 6, 2024. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards, and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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