this is what I'd do to reset MySQL password
1.) mysql --version
2.) sudo systemctl stop mysql(if root sudo is not needed)
3.) sudo mysqld_safe --skip-grant-tables &
4.) mysql -u root
5.) ALTER USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'MY_NEW_PASSWORD';
6.) FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
7.) UPDATE mysql.user SET authentication_string = PASSWORD('MY_NEW_PASSWORD') WHERE User = 'root' AND Host = 'localhost';
8.) FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
9.) SET PASSWORD FOR 'root'@'localhost' = PASSWORD('MY_NEW_PASSWORD');
10.) FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
if all goes well you should see this: Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)
then either restart mysql or reboot server
for more details search "reset mysql password"