UFC Fight Pass Invitational 8 is scheduled for October 10th, 2024 and the promotion has just announced a fantastic main event absolute match between Nicky Rodriguez and Michael Pixley. It’s some brilliant matchmaking by the promotion, as both men are coming into this off the best performances of their competitive careers to date. Rodriguez won the over 80kg division at the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational in flawless fashion, while Pixley made a name for himself on the very same weekend. He did it at ADCC 2024 though, where he submitted Nicholas Meregali and secured the biggest upset of the entire tournament in the process.
Pixley only narrowly missed out on a place on the podium in the under 99kg division and finished fourth, which was an excellent result for his debut appearance at ADCC. Coming up against the very best no gi grapplers in the world for the very first time can be daunting and to come away with a 2-2 record is an impressive feat. He was one of the breakthrough stars that emerged from that edition of the world’s most prestigious no gi grappling tournament. That alone will be enough to secure his return at ADCC 2026, as he will now be guaranteed an invite and will get the opportunity to improve upon his standing even more.
Michael Pixley has already enjoyed a huge boost to his reputation of course, and the opportunity to compete in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 8 against Nicky Rodriguez is clear evidence of that fact. Only the very best competitors in the world get the chance to headline a major event like that and it obviously comes with financial rewards as well. Getting a win over Rodriguez would be a monumental achievement for Pixley, while Rodriguez has the opportunity to beat a rising star and continue making his case for being the best in the world.
UFC Fight Pass announced the news that Nicky Rodriguez was facing Michael Pixley in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 8 in a recent post to their official Instagram account:
