There could be a shot at a title at stake as Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland face-up in a middleweight bout. The “Killa Gorilla,” better known as Cannonier, wants to put his most recent performance behind him and return to the winners’ circle. The 38-year-old battled for the middleweight title in his most recent fight against former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, but he struggled to establish a rhythm throughout the contest. He would eventually give in to Adesanya’s elite strike and movement. This will be Strickland’s first fight since losing his clash with the number one contender and getting knocked out severely by the powerful Brazilian Alex Pereira in the first round.
Who’s Jared Cannonier?
Jared “Killa Gorilla” Cannonier, a 38-year-old American male fighter with a 15-6-0 pro-MMA record, competes in the UFC. Jared Cannonier has 15 victories with an 80% completion record, including nine knockouts, three submission losses, and three decision victories.
Early Career
- Jared Cannonier began his MMA career in 2011 and faced Isaac Taylor in his amateur debut at Alaska Fighting Championship 81: Title Chase. Taylor was TKO’d in the second round by Cannonier, who controlled the contest. In his subsequent match, he defeated Josh Aynes in the first round. After this triumph, Cannonier decided to become a professional.
- He later joined the Alaskan MMA scene and won his first match against Alton Prince at Midnight Sun Mayhem 1: Final Word via first-round TKO. Before joining the UFC in 2014, Cannonier won his following six fights in the Alaskan MMA circuit.
UFC Career
- At UFC 182, Jarod Cannonier faced Shawn Jordan in his first UFC fight. Cannonier was outmatched in the contest and was KO’d in the opening round.
- Jarod recovered from the defeat and won his next two matches before facing Glover Teixeira at UFC 208.
- Teixeira handed Cannonier his second defeat by drawing on his vast expertise.
- At UFC: The Ultimate Fighter 26, Cannonier defeated Nick Roehrick to win his following match.
- After this, his career worsened as he quickly fell to Jan Blachowicz and Dominick Reyes.
- Jared won three consecutive fights to get back in the winning column, knocking off David Branch, Anderson Silva, and Jack Hermansson.
- Robert Whittaker was Cannonier’s next opponent, but he lost to him by a unanimous decision.
- At UFC on ESPN: 29, Cannonier faced Kelvin Gastelum. Cannonier put on a strong performance to win the match by unanimous decision.
- He then faced Derek Brunson, whom he defeated in the second round to earn his second straight victory.
- His winning streak prematurely ended when he competed against Israel Adesanya for a chance to win the middleweight championship.
Who’s Sean Strickland?
Sean “Tarzan” Strickland, a male fighter from the United States, is 31 years old and has a 25-4-0 career MMA record. With 25 victories and a 57% completion rate, Sean Strickland has ten knockouts, four submission losses, and 11 decisions.
Early Career
Before competing against Josh Bryant for the King of the Cage Middleweight Championship at KOTC: Unification on December 9, 2012, Strickland made his professional debut in 2008 for the King of the Cage company, compiling an unbeaten record of 9-0. Before being hired by the UFC, Strickland won by split decision and successfully defended his title three times.
UFC Career
- In 2014, Strickland made his UFC debut against Bubba McDaniel. In the opening round, Strickland prevailed by rear-naked choke submission.
- At UFC Fight Night 41, Strickland faced Luke Barnatt and prevailed by a split decision.
- The welterweight matchup between Strickland and Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC Fight Night 61 ended in a unanimous decision loss for Ponzinibbio.
- Igor Araujo was Strickland’s next opponent, and he prevailed unanimously.
- At UFC Fight Night 120 in November, Strickland squared off against Court McGee. All three rounds of this battle were back-and-forth, and the judges’ declared a majority draw. After the fight, it was discovered that the judges’ scorecards had been incorrectly calculated, and Strickland was given a unanimous decision victory.
- Strickland fought Nordine Taleb at UFC Fight Night 138. In the second round, he obtained a technical knockout victory. That was the last fight in his contract as he became a free agent.
- Strickland competed against Brendan Allen at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. dos Anjos in November 2020 after a two-year absence due to a motorcycle accident. He achieved a technical knockout victory. He was awarded Performance of the Night for his triumph.
- Before his upcoming fight, he competed against Alex Pereira at UFC 276 and lost by first-round knockout.
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Fight Details
The 185-pound bout between Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland is scheduled to take place at UFC Fight Night as the night’s main card: Cannonier vs. Strickland, starts at 9:30 pm EST on Saturday, December 17, 2022.
Fight Prediction
- Between Cannonier and Strickland, there is a seven-year difference. Cannonier is 38, while Strickland is 31.
- Cannonier’s reach is 1 inch longer than Strickland’s.
- However, in terms of professional MMA fights, Strickland has eight more fights than Cannonier.
- Looking at their last performance in the octagon, Strickland fell to an early knockout at the hands of Alex Perreira in his previous bout.
- At the same time, Cannonier last fought former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, and he lost on a unanimous decision.
Cannonier is poised to win this fight, he has a better finish rate, and his recent losses have been due to decisions. With how Strickland fell to Perreira, it’s hard to put money on him. The prediction is Cannonier to win by KO.
