The Film Room: Jared Cannonier

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Rising contender Jared Cannonier will be back in the Octagon for his third middleweight assignment when he faces Jack Hermansson in the UFC Fight Night 160 headliner on Saturday in Copenhagen, Denmark. Cannonier began his Ultimate Fighting Championship career as a heavyweight, but just five years later, he finds himself competing at 185 pounds. Since he moved to middleweight, he has posted back-to-back victories, both by technical knockout.

Cannonier, 35, supplies the material for this installment of The Film Room.



Standing 5-foot-11, Cannonier was one of the smaller heavyweights in the division and relied on his speed and footwork for success. Then he made the move to 205 pounds, where he was average size but went just 2-3, with losses to Glover Teixeira, Jan Blachowicz and Dominic Reyes. In 2018, he decided to make the cut to middleweight, where he is one of the larger men in the division. His wins over David Branch and Anderson Silva represent the two best performances of his career and proved the 35-year-old is a legitimate contender. Cannonier’s striking is simple, and he generally relies on the classic 1-2 down the middle. He likes to set up the 1-2 with a couple of jabs or jab feints and often throws an overhand right instead of a straight right. As a small heavyweight, Cannonier had to rely on his speed, but even at 185 pounds, he remains one of the fastest men in the division. His footwork always seems to be at the forefront of his mind, as he circles the opponent with jabs while looking for openings for the right hand.



Cannonier generally likes to work from the outside and pick apart his opponents with the 1-2, but he does have moments of aggression and can win a fight striking in the pocket. Something to notice about his exchanges in the pocket, especially against the cage: the variety of strikes he uses. He almost never headhunts and likes to mix in shots to the body before coming back up to the head. It would benefit him to be more aggressive at middleweight, especially since he is used to fighting larger men and taking harder punches.



Although he likes to work from the outside with his 1-2, Cannonier does not get the opportunity to counter as much as one would think. When he does, he has proven to have a slick counter lead hook and overhand right. It would be nice to see him counter in combination more, especially against Hermansson, who often drops his hands when evading.



Cannonier is solid defensively, but he does have some holes in his game that can be exploited. He does not deal with pressure well, and fighters who work in long combinations are his kryptonite. That description fits Hermansson, so if Cannonier’s counters and footwork are not on point, he is probably in for a long night. He also gets a bit aggressive at times and will lead with his head first. Against Dominick Reyes, he came forward with a right hand while crossing his feet, and Reyes countered with a quick uppercut that set up the finishing sequence of the fight.



A clever striker with the athleticism who now resides in the Top 10, Cannonier’s lack of grappling skills will likely hold him back from being elite. He defends just 44 percent of the takedowns coming his way, and fighters like Teixeira and Blachowicz destroyed him on the ground for all three rounds. While Cannonier does not figure to markedly improve in the area at this stage of his career, the fact that he has had to defend them against much larger men could help him exploit his strength advantages at 185 pounds. Hermansson has proven to be one of the most well-rounded fighters in the division, and his grappling performance against Souza should concern the rest of the division. Cannonier always has the chance at the one-punch knockout, so expect Hermansson to take few chances on the feet before looking to get the fight to the ground any way he can.