Roman Dolidze spoke exlusively to Fighters Only's Paul Browne ahead of his pivotal bout against Anthony Hernandez this weekend.
Roman Dolidze is quickly maturing as a fighter.
As he gears up to face Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez in the main event of UFC Vegas 109 this Saturday, Dolidze (15-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) has been reflecting on the lessons he learned during the first losing streak of his career.
The Georgian fighter joined the UFC in 2019 with a flawless 6-0 professional record. After a strong start—winning six of his first seven bouts—“The Caucasian” hit a rough patch in 2023 and 2024, suffering back-to-back decision losses to Marvin Vettori and Nassourdine Imavov that briefly derailed his climb up the middleweight ranks.
Since then, he has bounced back in impressive fashion. Wins over Anthony Smith and Kevin Holland helped rebuild his confidence and set up a rematch with Vettori in March. Dolidze delivered a strong performance and earned a unanimous decision victory, breaking into the top 10 at 185 pounds.
“Win or lose doesn't change me,” Dolidze says nonchalantly when asked what was behind his upturn in form inside the Octagon. “Fighting isn't everything in my life. But the Imavov fight changed how I'm approaching the sport, how I'm thinking about fights, what I need to do. And it made me think that I need to use all my skills inside the Octagon.
“If you go back and watch my fight with Kevin Holland (at UFC 307), he was very fast. I wanted to go strike as always with him, but when I felt that speed, I said, ‘okay, I will take him down and I'll finish it there.’
“If I had done the same with Imavov, I would also have won that fight. But back then, I just wanted to go forward, strike, and didn't use all my skills that I have. That's why I think I just need to win. Not only just go there and fight (on the feet). I need to manage my energy. I need to use my skills. And be smart with my fights. Not as always going just wild and trying to knock these opponents out.”
Fighting Smarter, Not Harder
One clear area of growth in Dolidze’s game has been his ability to handle the demands of five-round main events. His majority decision loss to Nassourdine Imavov in February of last year went the full 25 minutes, and Imavov’s superior energy management over the extended duration played a key role in the result.
However, in Dolidze’s most recent victory over Marvin Vettori, it was evident that he had made adjustments with the championship rounds in mind. By pacing himself more effectively throughout the fight, Dolidze was able to push the tempo late and outwork his Italian opponent down the stretch—something he believes was crucial in securing the win.
“My preparation hasn’t really changed but I’ve certainly changed how I'm thinking about fights,” the Georgian says. “Before, I was getting in there and in the first two rounds I was wasting all my energy. Now I'm managing it – I know that maybe you will not knock this guy out in the first rounds – and that's why you need to be ready for all five rounds. That’s (been) the main thing I’ve changed. I don't go there just to go crazy make crazy fights. I'm going there to win the fight.”
Dolidze faces a compelling challenge this weekend in the main event at UFC Vegas 109. Anthony Hernandez (14-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) enters the bout on a seven-fight winning streak, with victories over ranked opponents like Roman Kopylov, Michel Pereira, and Brendan Allen. The Californian has quickly emerged as a dangerous contender in the middleweight division.
“Fluffy is interesting fighter,” Dolidze says of his opponent this Saturday. “I don't think he's super in one certain area. He's not an elite super striker or he's not a super grappler or wrestler but he has very good cardio and he's getting people tired and that’s when he takes over in the grappling, wrestling or striking because he's fresher.
“But the difference between me and other his opponents (is) that I can grapple. I will not lay down there on the ground and let you do whatever you want (to me), I will grapple him, I will attack him, I will submit him.”
Dolidze Weighs In On Title Fight
Although Dolidze and Hernandez currently sit at ninth and tenth in the middleweight rankings, the division’s title picture will come into sharper focus later this month when Dricus Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) defends his belt for the third time against Khamzat Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) in the main event at UFC 319.
“It’s a great fight, very interesting,” Dolidze says of the matchup, “but I think it's very much 50-50. Because Khamzat, he's a good fighter. He can stop anybody, he can take down anybody. But after the second round, he's tired. He can do nothing. This is a five-round fight. And if he will manage to stop Dricus in the first round, that’s great. If not, I think he will lose. That's why it's 50-50 for me. Because Dricus is a very durable, a very good fighter. A strong fighter. Very well-rounded. That's why it's an interesting fight. But for me, it's 50-50.”
Like any top-ranked fighter in the UFC, Dolidze dreams of one day having a championship belt wrapped around his waist. His fellow countrymen, Merab Dvalishvili and Ilia Topuria, have both achieved that goal in recent years—an impressive feat, considering Georgia has a population of just 3.7 million.
While Dolidze is genuinely happy for both “The Machine” and “El Matador,” he doesn’t feel the need to draw inspiration from their victories in his own pursuit of glory.
“Both of these guys are good, my friends,” he says of Dvalishvili and Topuria. “I know both of them very well. Merab will be in my corner also (this Saturday). But I don't need nobody's success to push me to go forward. I'm a self-made man. I respect myself and my way. And I'm very happy for them. But I don't look at them as like, ‘oh, I need to do the same, oh, I need to also do this.’ I'm very happy for them, but I have my own path and my own way. And I'm very glad with what I have. And I don't need somebody to push me to go forward.”
