In UFC Vegas 102’s main event, a streaking Gregory Rodrigues met a former title challenger, now relegated to gatekeeper in Jared Cannonier. Could Rodrigues pull off the win against the aging veteran like Youssef Zalal did in the fight just before?
The man they call ‘Robocop’ is Cannonier’s junior by eight years and he looked like it early. He looked faster and more powerful. His shots were snappier and he knocked Cannonier down twice in the opening round. The ‘Killa Gorilla’ showed more life in round two, as his experience was starting to come in handy after surviving an early storm. In round three, the pace was noticeably slower. Rodrigues was perhaps not expecting his opponent to still be standing after his output in the opening round. Cannonier, mindful of the power coming back, looked more precise and took advantage of Robocop’s lower output. He knocked him down with an elbow in the last minute and pounded him out to steal the round. The fourth round started and the veteran immediately put it on Rodrigues, getting the TKO just 21 seconds in.
After losing back-to-back fights to rising contenders, the UFC gave Jared Cannonier a clear step back in competition as, while exciting, Gregory Rodrigues is not a fighter who was seen by the fans in the same way that the likes of Nassourdine Imavov and Caio Borralho were. Those are two “next gen” fighters that had a clear speed advantage over the veteran Cannonier and fully took advantage of it. Rodrigues has good attributes (durable, skilled grappler, packs a good punch), but speed isn’t one of them. Despite getting tagged early, Cannonier was eventually able to figure out Rodrigues on the feet and ultimately find the knockout.
With the victory, Cannonier proved that while a gatekeeper, he’s still a good litmus test for up-and-comers. This win won’t suddenly propel him back into the title picture, but it will keep him firmly inside the top 10. He’s probably looking at a similar matchup next, as it will take more than one of those types of win for the UFC to have him fight up the rankings again.
As for Rodrigues, this gives us a good idea of what his ceiling is. He’s always been an entertaining fighter to watch. His fan-favourite style is what provided him with this type of opportunity as his three-fight win streak probably didn’t warrant a fight with the number-seven ranked Cannonier, if we’re being honest. At 32, he’s in what is usually considered the physical prime of most fighters, although it’s not impossible for fighters in higher weight classes to age slowly (Cannonier being exhibit A). We should expect a big step back in competition for ‘Robocop.’ His fun fighting style might be what allows him to get another shot at the ranking sooner rather than later in a division that needs some new blood in its rankings.
