Carlos Hernandez Record: 10-5-0

Octagon run

Before the Contender Series breakthrough, Hernandez had already announced himself by submitting Matt Brown via second-round rear-naked choke at HFC 42 in February 2020. He opened his official UFC tenure in February 2022 with a hard-fought split-decision win over Victor Altamirano, then ran into the division's depth. He was submitted in the first round by Allan Nascimento in January 2023 before rebounding with a technical-decision victory over Denys Bondar that June. The schedule did not ease: in December 2023 he was stopped by second-round TKO against unbeaten prospect Tatsuro Taira, and in June 2024 he dropped a unanimous decision to another undefeated talent, Rei Tsuruya. He answered with a gutsy split-decision win over previously unbeaten Nyamjargal Tumendemberel in November 2024, then was submitted in the first round by surging contender Hyun Sung Park in May 2025.

Fighting style

Hernandez is a grappling-first flyweight whose record reflects it – all four of his wins inside the distance have come by submission, with no knockouts among his 10 victories and a finish rate around 40 percent. His best work happens once a fight hits the mat, where his rear-naked choke is a genuine threat, but his decision-heavy ledger also shows a willingness to grind out close rounds. The flip side is that his losses have repeatedly come against elite, undefeated prospects who could either out-grapple him on the canvas or punish him on the feet, exposing how thin the margins are at the top of the UFC's flyweight ladder.

Career highlights

• Hoosier Fight Club flyweight champion — captured a regional title in early 2020 and built the submission-heavy résumé that put him on the UFC's radar.
• Contender Series contract — edged Daniel Barez by split decision in 2021 to earn his place on the UFC roster.
• Spoiler of unbeaten prospects — handed Nyamjargal Tumendemberel his first professional loss in November 2024, a signature scalp in a brutal divisional gauntlet.