Las Vegas, NV — Middleweight Jared Cannonier (17-6) feels his performance at UFC Vegas 75 “puts my name well up there in that area” for a title fight, but knows champ Israel Adesanya wants to fight Dricus Du Plessis real bad.
And so, Cannonier told Cageside Press following a dominant (and record-setting, in terms of middleweight significant strikes) showing, he’s looking ahead to whatever comes next.
“I’m not really concerning myself with what may or may not be, I’m just going to focus on the next fight,” said Cannonier. “I’m going to get back in the gym, get back to making myself better, get back to improving my skills, and worry about the next fight.”
That next fight needs to get “The Killa Gorilla” to the title, or it appears it’s a non-starter. Asked if he would welcome Khamzat Chimaev back to middleweight, Cannonier was dismissive.
“I’m trying to get to the title. I’m not just fighting to entertain,” Cannonier stated. “I know you guys want to see it, it would be a good fight. If that fight gets me a title shot, yes.” But, as Cannonier noted, “I just beat #3. I’m not looking back, I’m looking forward. I’m looking at the champion. If Dana and Hunter and them say ‘he’s between you and the champion,’ that’s something we can talk about. But if you’re saying ‘would you fight Khamzat and welcome him to the division,’ I’m like, ‘does that get me to the title?’ That’s the question I have for you.”
Cannonier’s future remains to be seen. But the performance he put on Saturday at UFC Vegas 75 will be remembered fondly. Especially the second round, where he almost found the finish against Vettori, who has never been stopped. As to what he was thinking following that round, well, it came down to wanting to repeat that success.
“Let’s do that again. Let’s do it again in round three, see if he can survive. Put the pressure on, listen to my coaches, don’t go southpaw,” Cannonier recalled. “But yes, keep the pressure on, don’t give him any room to breathe and recover any more than one minute allows for. And keep building off of the damage I was doing. Keep building off of the openings and vulnerabilities I was creating. Keep getting better.”
Cannonier also thought about getting the finish in the fight, but Vettori simply proved too hard to put away.
Watch the full UFC Vegas 75 post-fight press conference appearance by Jared Cannonier above.
