Jared Cannonier defends his spot among the UFC middleweight elite against rising contender Caio Borralho. It's a meeting between the old and new at 185 pounds in UFC Fight Night's main event in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Cannonier (17-7) seeks retribution after what he deemed an early stoppage loss to another young middleweight contender, Nassourdine Imavov. Cannonier was ahead on two judges' scorecards heading into Round 4 before badly being rocked. Cannonier fled under a barrage of strikes but some argue he was competently defending himself when referee Jason Herzog intervened. Cannonier still feels the fight ended prematurely. An Imavov rematch isn't on the table and he couldn't commit to a short-notice turnaround against Kevin Holland, but an offer to fight Borralho on five weeks' notice cured his appetite for competition.
"I didn't want a long layoff and Nassourdine had already been booked, so I thought the idea of a rematch was gone with the wind," Cannonier told CBS Sports. "I'm not trying to sit around and wait. If they give me a name, I'm going to say yes. I'll fight whoever. It's nice fighting without the pressure of trying to have the top guys so you can get to the title.
"I'm still trying to get to the title. I'm still going to be a champion. But the closer I got, I put pressure on myself. That's not there anymore. Not to say I don't want that feeling, I want to get to the title, but I can look back in hindsight and see that is an alleviating stress factor."
Borralho (16-1) is a founding member of the Fighting Nerds team making a splash in the UFC. "Contender Series" graduates Borralho, Jean Silva and Carlos Prates are a combined 7-0 in the UFC this year and are undefeated in their last 37 combined fights. It's appropriate that their leader Borralho is on the verge of a top-five spot in the UFC's official middleweight rankings. Borralho parlayed a big knockout win over Paul Craig into a relatively short-notice main event. The bright fighter studied industrial chemistry in college before fully committing to mixed martial arts, bringing an analytical and academic approach to the fight game.
"It's almost as if I see things with numbers and statistics," Borralho told CBS Sports. "I put that inside the fight. I like to look at things this way. It's better for my brain. I figure things out and remember them faster. It's like hardware. I put everything there and I pick the information I need when the time comes.
"My movement, how I move my feet inside the Octagon, and my age will benefit me. He's 40 right now. He's not the same guy when he was fighting Anderson Silva or fighting for the title at 35 or 36 years old. For sure his body doesn't feel the same anymore. He started slowing down in the second round of the Imavov fight. "That's when he started getting sloppy and making mistakes. Those are the holes I need to target."
Check out the full interview with Caio Borralho below.
There's plenty of fun to be found beyond the main event on Saturday. Veteran strawweight Angela Hill looks to get back on track when she takes on rising contender Tabatha Ricci. Another veteran at welterweight looks to get things going when Neil Magny takes on undefeated prospect Michael Morales. And excitement should be found in the middeweight opener when Edmen Shahbazyan takes on Gerald Meerschaert.
Below is the rest of the fight card for Saturday with the latest odds before we get to a prediction and pick on the main event.
UFC Fight Night card, odds
| Favorite | Underdog | Weight class |
|---|---|---|
| Caio Borralho -125 | Jared Cannonier -105 | Middleweight |
| Tabatha Ricci -290 | Angela Hill +205 | Women's strawweight |
| Ryan Loder -120 | Robert Valentin Frey -110 | Middleweight |
| Michael Morales -285 | Neil Magny +200 | Welterweight |
| Edmen Shahbazyan -225 | Gerald Meerschaert +165 | Middleweight |
UFC Fight Night viewing information
Date: Aug. 24 | Start time: 10 p.m. ET (main card)
Location: UFC Apex -- Las Vegas
TV channel: ESPN+
Prediction
Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho: Don't expect a quick finish here. Cannonier and Borralho are durable, defensively sound fighters. Cannonier's wicked power hasn't served him consistently lately, but he's gone the distance with former middleweight champions Israel Adesanya, Sean Strickland and Robert Whittaker. Cannonier, 40, will need that experience against an opponent nine years his junior. The most important separator is Borralho's superior grappling. Borralho must mix in takedowns to keep his opponent guessing. A diverse strategy gives Borralho multiple avenues to victory and overwhelms Cannonier's defensive considerations. The biggest X factor is Borralho's lack of elite opponents. Jumping from middleweight Paul Craig to Cannonier is a significant challenge. But I see more upside in Borralho than Imavov. That gives me enough confidence to take him via late stoppage or decision. Borralho via Unanimous Decision
