Middleweight Caio Borralho found himself on the fast track on Saturday, outside the top 10 but placed into the UFC Vegas 96 main event with Jared Cannonier.
A member of the Fighting Nerds camp, Borralho was on a six-fight win streak, making the booking against a former title challenger and top contender more than understandable. Entering the night, Cannonier was ranked #5 in the UFC‘s 185lb division.
Borralho opened the fight with a jab, that almost certainly got the attention of “The Killa Gorilla” Cannonier. Outside of that, there were plenty of feints and some footwork on display, with a bit of a chess match playing out. As the round progressed, Borrlaho would flash a high kick that was sneaky-fast and powerful, though Cannonier was able to block it. The Brazilian also ripped the body with a kick, and touched up Cannonier’s lead leg several times throughout the round. Cannonier, in the final minute, was able to fire off a combo that had Borralho covering up.
Round two saw the firefight continue, and this time, Cannonier was able to connect, rocking Borralho. He appeared to have slowed, and Cannonier was able to easily duck a punch, reading it well when it came. Borralho’s movement had been hampered ever since that connection, and it took him a good chunk of the round to find his rhythm again. At the end of the round, Cannonier would land hard once again, catching Borralho to the side of the head, a left hand finding its mark.
Borralho landed a left early in round three, trying to sway the momentum back in his favor. Cannonier landed a right just over a minute in. Cannonier appeared to have found his range, and through the first half of the round continued the success he had achieved in the second. In the back half of the round, however, Borralho put Cannonier on the back foot, hurting him repeatedly with his left hand and keeping him under heavy fire. Cannonier fell to a knee, rocked, in the dying seconds of the third but recovered, with Borralho awfully close to finishing the fight!
Round four saw Cannonier firing his jab repeatedly, looking to keep Borralho at bay. A wise decision, as Cannonier may not have been fully recovered from the third. His right hand connected twice about a minute in, but Borralho continued to walk him down, looking to cut off the cage. If nothing else, Cannonier appeared to have regained his faculties. As the round progressed, he took some big swings, landing a heavy blow off a three-punch combination with just under two minutes to go. Borralho was showing some damage to his right eye as a result, but Cannonier slipped before he could take advantage.
The pair would finish round four trading, with Borralho punching Cannonier’s mouth guard out, and Jared actually catching it and popping it back in.
If the fight was anything but even, Borralho might have been up three rounds to one heading into round five. It could have just as easily been tied, however, making the final frame critical for both men. The back-and-forth continued, with Cannonier going to the body a little. Near the midway mark, Borralho connected with a bunch that had Cannonier unsteady. Shortly after, his mouthpiece went flying, with the ref briefly calling time so he could retrieve it. That wasn’t enough of a pause for Cannonier to recover, and moments later, Borralho knocked him down! Borralho got on top and rained down ground n’ pound at a furious pace, but somehow, some way, Cannonier survived. With over a minute on the clock, Borralho switched to elbows, then went after an arm-triangle choke. The choke was in tight, and the ref checked on Cannonier, but he gave the thumbs up. Cannonier would actually escape out and finish the fight on the feet, but after the end to round five, Borralho appeared to have done enough.
Official Result: Caio Borrlaho def. Jared Cannonier by unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 48-46)
