Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier Preview
Israel Adesanya defends his UFC middleweight championship at UFC 276 this weekend in a refreshing contest against a rather likeable opponent in Jared Cannonier. I have Cannonier only behind Robert Whittaker for 'Most Likeable Israel Adesanya Ops' and as someone who didn't watch Anderson Silva's dominance, Cannonier feels more likeable than Silva along with the Aussie battler Rob Wilkinson - who Adesanya defeated in his UFC debut.
The rest of Adesanya's opponents are icky and while the UFC is generally rather icky, all the fluff that goes with fighters aiming for Adesanya and talking crap is super icky. Hearty UFC fans know the vibe as lads like Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa had the loudest chat, before and after Adesanya smoked them. Casual UFC fans tuning in to support Aotearoa's City Kickboxing should pay no attention to press conferences etc and just tune in for the bout.
Cannonier is genuinely a fascinating lad, equally as interesting as Adesanya. Cannonier also started his Mixed Martial Arts journey as a heavyweight, entering the UFC at heavyweight back in 2015 before dropping down to light heavyweight and then middleweight. Cannonier is 5-1 at middleweight and his only loss was against Robert Whittaker while Cannonier has wins over Silva, Kelvin Gastelum and Derek Brunson; three fighters Adesanya defeated.
With four finishes at middleweight spread across kicks, punches and elbows, Cannonier is a funky striker. Having moved down weight divisions, Cannonier also carries a fair amount of power and perhaps more power than Adesanya. Cannonier is shorter than Adesanya which puts his heavier days into context and while he gives up range because of this, Cannonier's variety of weapons helps him rack up shots when inside that range.
The issue for all of Adesanya's opponents is that they freeze in front of Adesanya and can't do what they want to do. Adesanya is the CKB leader for all the tricks that form a puzzle for the opponent, forcing them to react to a fake to the point where they don't know what is a fake and what is real. The only bloke who did what they wanted to do against Adesanya was Yoel Romero and he literally built a shell ... and did nothing.
Adesanya might not have the same power as Cannonier and he doesn't need it. Adesanya finishes opponents through precision, after setting things up for a round or two. Watch closely and you'll catch the vibe of Adesanya processing lots of information in the first round, whether it's how the opponent bites on the fakes or what the opponent is trying to do. As that processing rolls along, Adesanya is quick to pounce on an opening with CKB swiftness.
This forms a low key banger. Not only is Cannonier a lovely chap, he has a funky skillset that Adesanya hasn't dealt with yet and Cannonier could find his own openings to put Adesanya in difficult spots. Again, opponents don't really do what they want against Adesanya though. This could see Adesanya showcase his wizardry and that is awesome considering that Adesanya/CKB channel Aotearoa's combat sports lineage in all their mahi.
Adesanya may also have to venture into the darkness if he gets caught by heavy shots. Adesanya has shown and elevated his mana in fights such as the gritty battle against Gastelum, which isn't ideal but also tapping into the powers of Aotearoa. Sometimes tuning in is mandatory because kiwis know that Adesanya will lay down some big talking Jerry. This time, tuning in is mandatory because it's a fresh challenge that will showcase Adesanya, CKB and Aotearoa mana on the biggest stage in the world.
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Peace and love.