Alex
Caceres has exceeded even the most optimistic expectations in
his 12-plus years on the
Ultimate Fighting Championship roster.
“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 12 quarterfinalist will get another
turn in the spotlight when he confronts
Daniel
Pineda in the
UFC on ESPN 46 featherweight co-main event this Saturday at the
UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Caceres has rattled off six wins across his
past seven appearances, a decision defeat to
Sodiq
Yusuff his only misstep. He last competed at UFC Fight Night
216, where he cut down
Julian
Erosa with a head kick and follow-up punches a little more than
three minutes into their Dec. 17 pairing.
As Caceres moves ever closer to his showdown with Pineda at 145
pounds, a look at some of the rivalries that have helped shape his
career to this point:
The Mohler MMA representative survived a pair of wicked groin shots
to notch a split decision over Caceres as part of the UFC 143
undercard on Feb. 4, 2012 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las
Vegas. All three judges scored it 28-27:
Chris Lee for
Caceres, Sal D’Amato and Glenn Trowbridge for Figueroa. Caceres
landed two low blows in the match, one in the first round and
another in the second. He was warned by referee
Herb Dean for
the first infraction and penalized two points for the second.
Outside of a first-round head kick that dropped and nearly finished
Caceres, Figueroa did little in terms of meaningful offense.
Caceres kept him at bay on the feet and controlled him on the
ground, mounting him twice inside the first five minutes and
seizing back control in all three rounds. Still, the two-point
penalty loomed large, and his inability to finish cost him in the
win-loss column.
Caceres submitted the prized
Roufusport prospect and future
Bellator
MMA champion with a rear-naked choke in the third round of
their featured UFC on Fox 10 prelim on Jan. 25, 2014 at the United
Center in Chicago. Pettis tapped out 4:39 into Round 3, tasting
defeat for the first time as a professional. Caceres appeared to be
outgunned and a step slow through the first five minutes, as “The
Phenom” peppered him with an array of punches and kicks. However,
everything changed in the second round, where Caceres floored the
Milwaukee native with a searing straight left. Pettis, just 20
years old at the time, seemed out of sorts from that point forward.
In the third round, he failed on a takedown attempt and wound up in
bottom position. Pettis then fished for a heel hook, only to leave
himself exposed. Caceres transitioned to his back, cinched the
choke and landed the submission with a little more than 20 seconds
remaining in the match.
The brick-fisted
World Extreme Cagefighting veteran took care of Caceres with
punches in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 68 bantamweight
showcase on June 6, 2015 at the Smoothie King Center in New
Orleans. The end came 21 seconds into Round 1. Rivera did not fool
around. He countered a lazy Caceres jab with a short right hand and
a savage left hook, flooring the Miami native where he stood.
Rivera then pounced on his dazed counterpart and closed the deal
with standing-to-ground shots from both hands. It remains the only
knockout loss of Caceres’ extensive 34-fight resume.
“The Ultimate Fighter Latin America” winner walked out of his UFC
Fight Night 92 main event against Caceres with a split decision on
Aug. 6, 2016 at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City. Two
of the three cageside judges—Trowbridge and Tony Weeks—saw it 48-47
for Rodriguez, while Derek Cleary gave Caceres an eyebrow-raising
49-46 nod. Rodriguez threw 141 more strikes than “Bruce Leeroy,”
found the mark with nearly twice as many (124-65) and connected at
a higher clip, 35% to 31%. He outperformed Caceres in the
significant strikes department in all five rounds. Broken down
further, Rodriguez utilized significantly more variety, outscoring
the MMA Lab representative to the head, body and legs. “Pantera”
maintained a ridiculous work rate, cutting loose with more strikes
(89) over the final five minutes than he did in any other round.
Caceres was at his best in the middle stanza, where he swarmed with
punches, ripped a knee to the body and scrambled into top position,
crouching above the taekwondo black belt before unleashing his
ground-and-pound. It did not result in the desired momentum swing.
Rodriguez regained control when it mattered most and settled for a
split verdict.
Caceres was awarded a contentious split decision over Bravo when
their featured featherweight attraction helped anchor “The Ultimate
Fighter 27” Finale on July 6, 2018 at the Palms Casino Resort in
Las Vegas. All three members of the judiciary struck 29-28
scorecards: Cleary and
Dave Hagen
for Caceres, Rick Winter for Bravo. Caceres did his best work
inside the first 10 minutes. The
MMA Lab product countered effectively at times in the first
round and dazed Bravo twice with left hands in the second, where he
also mixed in a takedown and a spinning backfist. Caceres’ pace
dipped noticeably in Round 3. There, Bravo sent his mouthpiece
flying with a two-punch combination, backed him up with relentless
forward pressure and continued to fire punches with both hands.
However, the Entram Gym representative’s efforts went unrewarded,
as he failed to dig out of an early hole.