Jared Cannonier

Jared Christopher Cannonier (born March 16, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently fights in the Middleweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of June 11, 2024, he is #5 in the UFC middleweight rankings.

Early career
Cannonier began his amateur mixed martial arts career in early 2011, winning his first two fights by knockout. In June 2011, he made his professional MMA debut in Alaska. He fought sporadically over the next five years, amassing a record of 7–0.

2015
In October 2014, it was announced that Cannonier had signed with the UFC. In his debut he faced Shawn Jordan in a Heavyweight bout at UFC 182 on January 3, 2015. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round.

Replacing injured Matt Van Buren, Cannonier was scheduled to face Jonathan Wilson at UFC Fight Night 73 on August 8, 2015. In turn, Cannonier was forced to pull out due to an injury and was replaced by Chris Dempsey.

2016
After an 18-month long layoff, Cannonier returned to face Cyril Asker on April 10, 2016, at UFC Fight Night: Rothwell vs. dos Santos. He defeated Asker by knockout due to a combination of elbows and punches. The win also earned Cannonier his first Performance of the Night bonus award.

In his third fight for the promotion, Cannonier moved down to the light heavyweight division. He faced Ion Cuțelaba on December 3, 2016, at The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale. Cannonier won the fight by unanimous decision. The bout also won Cannonier his second consecutive bonus award as he and Cuțelaba won Fight of the Night.

2017
As the first fight of his new six-fight contract, Cannonier faced Glover Teixeira on February 11, 2017, at UFC 208. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Cannonier was expected to face Steve Bossé on July 7, 2017, at The Ultimate Fighter 25 Finale. However, Bossé was removed from the fight just days before the event and was replaced by promotional newcomer Nick Roehrick. Cannonier won the fight via TKO in the third round.

Cannonier was expected to face Antônio Rogério Nogueira on December 16, 2017, at UFC on Fox 26. However, on October 19, it was announced that Nogueira was pulled from the card after being notified by USADA of a potential doping violation. Cannonier would face Jan Błachowicz instead. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

2018
Cannonier faced Dominick Reyes on May 19, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 129. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

Cannonier was expected to face Alessio Di Chirico in a middleweight bout on November 17, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 140. However, it was reported on October 19, 2018, that Cannonier would face David Branch at UFC 230 instead. He won the fight via technical knockout in round two. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.

2019
Cannonier faced former UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva on May 11, 2019, at UFC 237. He won the fight via TKO in the first round after a kick to Silva's right leg rendered him unable to continue.

Cannonier faced Jack Hermansson on September 28, 2019, in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 18. He was victorious via second-round TKO. The win also earned Cannonier his third Performance of the Night bonus award.

2020
Cannonier was scheduled to face former UFC Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker on March 7, 2020, at UFC 248. However, on January 15, 2020, it was announced Whittaker pulled out of the bout for undisclosed reasons.

Cannonier was slated to serve as a backup fighter for the UFC Middleweight Championship fight between Israel Adesanya and Yoel Romero at UFC 248 on March 7, 2020, however, on February 14, 2020, Cannonier announced he had suffered a torn pectoral muscle and expects to be out of action for six months.

Cannonier faced Robert Whittaker on October 24, 2020 at UFC 254. Cannonier lost the fight via unanimous decision. After the fight, Cannonier revealed in an Instagram post that he suffered a broken arm from a kick that Whittaker landed in the first round.

2021
Cannonier was scheduled to face Paulo Costa on August 21, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 29. However, on June 4, Costa withdrew from the bout, claiming he never signed the bout agreement and had issues with his payment, while not confirming them as the reason for his withdrawal. It was later confirmed that Kelvin Gastelum replaced Costa. Cannonier won the fight via unanimous decision.

2022
As the first bout of his new six-fight contract, Cannonier was scheduled to face Derek Brunson on January 22, 2022, at UFC 270. However, for undisclosed reasons the bout was moved to UFC 271 on February 12, 2022. He won the fight via knockout in round two. The win earned him a Performance of the Night bonus award.

Cannonier faced Israel Adesanya for the UFC Middleweight Championship on July 2, 2022, at UFC 276. He lost the bout via unanimous decision.

Cannonier was scheduled to face Sean Strickland on October 15, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 212. However, the bout was scrapped after Strickland withdrew due to a finger infection. The pair was rebooked for UFC Fight Night 216 on December 17, 2022. Cannonier won the fight via split decision.

2023
Cannonier faced Marvin Vettori on June 17, 2023 at UFC on ESPN 47. Cannonier won the bout via unanimous decision, in the process setting the record for most significant strikes landed in a bout in UFC middleweight history with 241 significant strikes. The win also earned Cannonier his second Fight of the Night bonus award.

Cannonier was scheduled to face Roman Dolidze on December 2, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 52. However, he suffered an MCL tear in October during training and was pulled from the bout.

2024
Cannonier faced Nassourdine Imavov at UFC on ESPN 57 on June 8, 2024. He lost the bout via technical knockout in the fourth round. The stoppage was considered controversial, with some deeming it premature.

Personal life
Prior to embarking on a mixed martial arts career, Cannonier served in the United States Army. After three years of service, he was discharged from the army due to testing positive for marijuana, and worked as an air traffic controller in Alaska until being signed to the UFC.

Mixed martial arts

 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Fight of the Night (Two times) vs. Ion Cuțelaba and Marvin Vettori
 * Performance of the Night (Four times) vs. Cyril Asker, David Branch, Jack Hermansson, and Derek Brunson
 * Most significant strikes landed in a UFC Middleweight bout (+241 vs Marvin Vettori)
 * Fourth most significant strikes landed in a fight in UFC history (+241 vs Marvin Vettori)
 * One of two fighters (Conor McGregor) to have knockout victories in three different weight classes
 * Alaska Fighting Championship
 * AFC Heavyweight Championship (One time)
 * MMAjunkie.com
 * 2023 June Fight of the Month vs. Marvin Vettori

Mixed martial arts record

 * Win
 * align=center| 2-0
 * Josh Aynes
 * TKO (punches)
 * Alaska FC 83
 * June 4 2011
 * align=center|1
 * align=center|N/A
 * Anchorage, Alaska, United States
 * Win
 * align=center| 1-0
 * Isaac Taylor
 * TKO (punches)
 * Alaska FC 81
 * March 12 2011
 * align=center|2
 * align=center|1:21
 * Anchorage, Alaska, United States
 * }
 * align=center|1:21
 * Anchorage, Alaska, United States
 * }
 * }
 * }