A middleweight fight between Jared Cannonier and Gergory Rodrigues will headline UFC Fight Night 251 in Las Vegas on February 15th.
A former title contender, the 40-year-old Cannonier is coming off a disappointing 2024 campaign that saw him lose twice, with a TKO defeat to Nassourdine Imavov in June being followed by a decision loss to Caio Borralho a few months later.
That leaves Cannonier ranked No.8 in the division as now gets ready to fight the 32-year-old Rodrigues, who is currently on a three-fight winning streak.
That run began with a KO victory against Denis Tiuliulin in 2023, while this year he’s gone on to TKO Brad Tavares in February, followed by a decision win over Christian Leroy Duncan in July.
Despite his overall 7-2 run in the UFC so far, ‘Robocop’ is not currently ranked at 185lbs, but this fight offers a big opportunity to do so, while also being his first opportunity to headline a show.
Cannonier vs. Rodrigues fronts a UFC Fight Night 251 card that also features the likes of Rodolfo Vieira vs. Jacob Malkoun, Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Dylan Budka and brothers Ismael Bonfim and Gabriel Bonfim competing against Nazim Sadykhov and Rinat Fakhretdinov respectively.
