Where To Watch: Israel Adesanya Vs. Jared Cannonier Tonight
With the summer well underway, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has turned up the heat in the mixed martial arts world with UFC 276: Adesanya vs. Cannonier. Live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, fans can look forward to five matchups on the main card, including two highly anticipated title fights.
Featured in the main event of the evening, Israel Adesanya (22-1) hopes to defend his middleweight title for the fifth time, while also looking to remain undefeated at 185-pounds. Set to square off with Adesanya is the highly ranked, and highly skilled, Jared Cannonier (15-5), who is confident in his skill set and feels that this is his time.
Adesanya made the jump to MMA after cutting his teeth with Glory Kickboxing. Following this, he quickly found himself fighting top opponents and climbing the rankings in the UFC. Since his promotional debut, he has recorded 11 wins over top caliber fighters such as Anderson Silva, Yoel Romero, Paulo Costa, and Robert Whittaker, from whom he took the middleweight belt in 2019.
With the long list of opponents that he has defeated, some may see Cannonier as a footnote to add to Adesanya’s resume. But, with the extreme size and power that Cannonier possesses, alongside athleticism that is at the very least on par with any of the top contenders in the UFC, overlooking this challenge with be the gravest of mistakes for the champion.
Cannonier started his UFC career in 2015 after a successful run in Alaska FC. He made his debut with the promotion in the heavyweight division, but quickly moved down to light heavyweight, where he remained for five fights.
Following two straight losses to Jan Błachowicz and Dominick Reyes, Cannonier decided to make the cut down to 185-pounds and join the ranks of the middleweight division. Many feel this is when Cannonier truly found his stride, recording victories over Anderson Silva, Kelvin Gastelum and Derek Brunson, who he most recently defeated with devastating elbows earlier this year.
With the proper motivation of UFC gold within his grasp, there is no telling what Cannonier will be able to achieve. But he will certainly have his work cut out for him tonight with Adesanya, who has been listed as one of the most dynamic and skilled strikers that the UFC has ever seen.
#AndStill or #AndNew? 🤔@StyleBender & @KillaGorillaMMA find out Saturday night!
[ #UFC276 | #UFCFightWeek | Saturday | Live on ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/f2ejdXg5Hv ] pic.twitter.com/U8wOzWuz6u
— UFC (@ufc) June 30, 2022
In the evening’s co-main event, fans will have the pleasure of seeing Alexander Volkanovski (24-1) defend his featherweight belt in a third meeting with fan favorite Max “Blessed” Holloway (23-6). Holloway will look to avenge the two closely contested losses he suffered to Volkanovski in the past, while the champion will hope to continue the healthy winning streak he has been on since 2013.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 is coming 💢@AlexVolkanovski vs @BlessedMMA
[ #UFCFightWeek | Saturday | Live on ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/f2ejdXg5Hv ] pic.twitter.com/8UwGiFxQOF
— UFC (@ufc) June 30, 2022
Here’s the fight card, when and where to watch:
Main card
- Israel Adesanya (c) vs. Jared Cannonier for the UFC middleweight title
- Alexander Volkanovski (c) vs. Max Holloway 3 for the UFC featherweight title
- Sean Strickland vs. Alex Pereira; Middleweights
- Pedro Munhoz vs. Sean O’Malley; Bantamweights
- Robbie Lawler vs. Bryan Barberena; Welterweights
Prelims
- Brad Riddell vs. Jalin Turner; Lightweights
- Ian Garry vs. Gabriel Green; Welterweights
- Jim Miller vs. Donald Cerrone; Welterweights
- Brad Tavares vs. Dricus Du Plessis; Middleweights
Date: July 2
Time: Prelims 8 p.m. ET, Main card 10 p.m. ET
Stream/Channel: ESPN/ESPN+