Adesanya vs Cannonier preview & best bets – UFC 276 main event

Israel Adesanya will be attempting to make his fifth straight successful defense of the UFC Middleweight Championship when he takes on Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC 276 this Saturday night. This fight highlights a stacked pay-per-view card taking place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Adesanya vs Cannonier records, stats & form

Israel Adesanya (22-1-0) has enjoyed a successful return to middleweight after his failed attempt to claim the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship from Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259. Adesanya defeated Marvin Vettori in his first fight back at middleweight at UFC 263 and followed that up with a win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 271. Adesanya is a perfect 22-0 at his natural weight with 15 of those 22 wins coming by way of knockout.

Jared Cannonier (15-5-0) had a streak of three straight knockout wins over David Branch, Anderson Silva and Jack Hermansson snapped with a decision loss to Robert Whittaker at UFC 254. After Whittaker lost his title shot and Cannonier bounced back with wins over Kelvin Gastelum and Derek Brunson, the former heavyweight was officially next in line for a championship bout. Cannonier is 5-1 as a middleweight with four knockout wins.

Adesanya vs Cannonier betting predictions

There is a case to be made for Cannonier as a big underdog here. There’s no denying his punching power; 10 of his 15 career wins have come by knockout, and his power has become even more prevalent since dropping down to middleweight. If this fight winds up being a dogfight in the middle of the octagon, all it takes is one well-timed flurry of blows for a new champion to be crowned.

With that said, picking against a fighter as elite as Adesanya in the middle of his prime is tough to do. Adesanya has struggled a bit with his takedown defense in some of his recent fights, but that’s not Cannonier’s game. Cannonier will be content to trade blows with Adesanya, and even if his knockout power isn’t what it used to be, the champion is still an excellent striker that throws a bunch of different looks at his opponents.

It’s also worth noting that only one of Cannonier’s 13 career fights in the UFC have gone longer than three rounds. By contrast, Adesanya has gone five rounds in four of his last five bouts. With his high in-ring IQ, versatile striking, elite endurance and championship experience, Adesanya is just too good to pick against here – although we wouldn’t fault you for trying at this price.

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