Uroš MedićW vs. Daniel Rodriguez
UFC Fight Night · August 1, 2026 · Belgrade Arena · Main Card 1:00 PM ET
The brief
- The result
- Uroš Medić by TKO (punches), R1
- What kind of fight
- Sprint vs. marathon
- Finish likelihood
- High
- The line
- No line posted yet
- The stakes
- Welterweight · Main event
The result
Uroš Medić def. Daniel Rodriguez — TKO (punches), R1 0:30
The sprint beat the marathon in 30 seconds.
Rodriguez actually landed first — a hard low kick that swept Medić down to a knee — but the Serbian got right back up, let his hands go, and dropped Rodriguez with a left hand before finishing him with ground strikes as Belgrade Arena went into hysterics. It capped a record-setting night (ten first-round finishes, twelve total, both modern UFC records) with the hometown hero's fourth straight first-round stoppage.
Medić still has never heard a judge's scorecard in sixteen pro fights, and the 'if he touches anyone clean in round one, the fight can end instantly' line from the pre-fight read needed no edits.
The breakdown below was written before the fight.
The read
Style logic says Medić empties the chamber early, and his power at range is legitimately frightening — if he touches anyone clean in round one, the fight can end instantly.
But Rodriguez has been in wars with heavy hitters for years and tends to drag opponents into deep water with sheer volume. The longer it goes, the more it tilts toward D-Rod's cardio and the more questions get asked of Medić, who has rarely seen a third round.
Expect fireworks either way: one man finishes everyone, the other outlasts everyone, and only one of those trends survives Saturday.
The matchup
This is a striker-versus-striker main event with a clear tension: Medić is a violent fast starter who has never needed the judges, while Rodriguez is a durable volume machine who gets stronger as fights get messier.
The first five minutes are everything — Medić's knockout streak is built on early ambushes, and Rodriguez has historically eaten big shots and kept marching. If Rodriguez survives the storm, his output and experience over five rounds become a real problem for a man who has never gone past round two in a win.
Add a raucous Belgrade crowd behind Medić and the emotional stakes of Serbia's first UFC card, and this has genuine chaos potential.
Tale of the tape
| 13-3 | Record | 20-5 |
| 33 | Age | 39 |
| 6'1" | Height | 6'1" |
| 71" | Reach | 74" |
| Southpaw | Stance | Southpaw |
| Serbia | Country | United States |
| Kings MMA | Team | — |
The numbers
Career UFC averages. Red bar = statistical edge.
The fighters
Uroš Medić 13-3
“The Doctor”
Uroš Medić grew up in Novi Sad, Serbia, starting judo as a kid before falling in love with striking, and now he gets to headline the UFC's first-ever card in his home country. Every single one of his 13 pro wins has come by finish — 11 knockouts and 2 submissions — and he has never once heard a judge's scorecard read in victory. He enters Belgrade on a three-fight knockout streak, with none of those wins lasting 90 seconds. Now training at Kings MMA in California, the ranked welterweight is the biggest star in Serbian MMA and the reason this event exists.
- WGeoff Neal · KO (punches)UFC Fight Night 267 · February 21, 2026
- WMuslim Salikhov · TKO (punches)UFC Fight Night: Bonfim vs. Brown · November 8, 2025
- WGilbert Urbina · KO (punch)UFC on ESPN: Dolidze vs. Hernandez · August 9, 2025
Daniel Rodriguez 20-5
“D-Rod”
Daniel Rodriguez is a Los Angeles product who came to MMA late and made up for lost time with some of the highest striking volume in the welterweight division. The 39-year-old southpaw throws over seven significant strikes a minute and wins firefights by simply outworking people. He rides a three-fight win streak into Belgrade, including a knockout of Santiago Ponzinibbio and a clear decision over Kevin Holland that put him back in the rankings. This is his first UFC main event, and he takes it deep in enemy territory against the hometown hero.
- WKevin Holland · Decision (unanimous)UFC 318 · July 19, 2025
- WSantiago Ponzinibbio · TKO (punches)UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo · May 3, 2025
- WAlex Morono · Decision (split)UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Taira · October 12, 2024