Fight Prediction Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier

In the history of the UFC middle division, there have been enough legendary fighters who have forever taken a place in the hearts of the fans. But after the era of the reign of Anderson Silva, only Israel Adesanya, who already has 4 successful belt defenses and an army of fans behind his back, was able to attract special attention. It was he who had the honor to lead the UFC 276 tournament, and the leader will be opposed by a puncher from Alaska - Jared Cannonier.

Style and technique will clash with brute physical strength and pressure on July 3rd, and only the fight itself will show who will be able to use their advantages to the fullest. Of course, "The Last Master of Styles" as a champion will enter the octagon as a favorite, but who, if not Jared, can cross out all quotes with one hit? We will weigh the pros and cons of this fight to determine the most likely winner of the title showdown.

• Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier;
• Israel Adesanya;
• IJared Cannonier;
• Comparative analysis;
• Game Totals Prediction.

Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier

Israel Adesanya

The current champion is in the TOP 3 of the best UFC fighters, regardless of weight. His background consists of performances in professional boxing (6-1), kickboxing (75-5) and MMA. By the way, being a kicker, he fought for the Glory title, but failed to take it. In addition to the status of first interim, and then the undisputed champion of the UFC, Israel has achieved some success in the BJJ, having received a purple belt there.

Speaking in Australia, Adesanya became the champion of the Hex Fighting Series and AFC regional promotions. Along the way, the Nigerian passed through such high-profile opponents as Melvin Gillard, Brad Tavares, Marvin Vettori, Kelvin Gastelum and others. And all this, the athlete wrote down in his asset, practically without using wrestling skills - pure striking technique, and nothing more.

Strengths

Given that Israel does not have a single knockout punch, his style can be considered one of the most versatile among those used by the rest. Due to the long limbs, he feels free at a long distance, pouring low kicks on the opponents' legs and meeting them with piercing blows to the body. And excellent reaction and timing give him the opportunity to throw combinations of several hooks, being right in front of his opponent. And that's not counting the feints, movements and other techniques that create his own style.

Adesanya is a tall fighter without impressive muscle mass. This allows him to maintain a perfect balance in controlling the enemy at any distance and speed.

In certain fights, the champion allowed himself to be cut down, but in most cases he chooses a style of fighting that guarantees him complete safety. Yes, the public does not like these fights, but Israel's clean face after 5 rounds speaks for itself.

In the category up to 84 kg, practically no one could cause serious problems to the New Zealander in the stalls, and even more so to adequately control him on the ground. If it was still possible to transfer Adesanya, then he rose rather quickly and did not allow the opponents to at least somehow gain a foothold from above and develop their attack.

Weaknesses

Watching the old performances of "Stylebender", you could see how he burns with what he does. Now, Israel turns his fights into a dull run, where shooting low kicks and rare two-threes become the apogee of what is happening. Yes, and the fighter himself claims that he does not plan to delay his resignation, and all this together can play a cruel joke on him, especially given the level of opposition.

The current form and readiness of the fighter

Adesanya is 32 years old and his last win over Robert Whittaker dates back to February 2022. Prior to that, he won a second time against Marvin Vettori, lost to Blachowicz, making the title race in 93 kg, and passed Paulo Costa with Yoel Romero. The champion competes at least twice a year, keeps a good pace and always comes out in great shape, which is enough even for protracted fights. However, due to the frank "drying" of the battles, it's hard to say that he is progressing or at least keeping at the same high level. Most likely, Izzy does not see in opponents what can make him give out 100% of his abilities.

Jared Cannonier

The American athlete is on the second line of the rating table. At the moment, the most outstanding achievement in his career is winning the Alaska Fighting Championship belt, moreover, in the heavyweight category. It’s true that Jared spent his first performances, even in the UFC, in the category over 93 kg, then he went to light heavyweight, where he faced Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira, ex-champions, but, taking into account the issue of dimensions, he decided to move to middleweights.

The impressive knockout power allowed him to quickly gain a foothold among the tops, because Kannonir did not care who was standing in front of him - a wrestler or a striker, everyone fell into knockouts. Having reached the top of the division at a fairly honorable age, he has not ceased to amaze with his fights, so the fight with Adesanya may not turn out to be as one-sided as some “experts” see it.

Strengths

Whether Jared is tired or not, he always finds the perfect moment to deliver the "death" blow. Even in the fight with Whittaker, who was much faster and more accurate, he was able to give him a lot of problems. Natural strength helps the American where he lacks technology.

This athlete has repeatedly demonstrated that he can be knocked down, wrestled, worn down and so on - all this ultimately does not matter. He will definitely go forward and try to take off his opponent's head. Such is his style - all or nothing, even if sometimes it plays against him.

Once Cannonir smells blood, there's no stopping him. He performs finishing moves in the stalls and near the net with particular cruelty, and in this mode he shows his entire arsenal. Even small impacts in terms of amplitude cause enormous damage, and this is not counting the elbows and kicks that the fighter uses with enviable frequency.

Weaknesses

Footwork, movement from the opponent's punching hand, cutting corners and other such things are alien to Jared. He likes to stand in front of his counterpart and strike at him, go forward, be on the attack. This makes him not only an easy target for more experienced strikers, but also prey for wrestlers. And all this happens on the condition that "The Killa Gorilla" does not put up its defense in the best way, eating a lot of extra hits.

The current form and readiness of the fighter

Gunnoneer is 38 years old, and in February he cut Derek Brunson's lead, which knocked out his place in the title race. Before that, he added a victory over Kelvin Gastelum, a difficult defeat to Whittaker, as well as finishes in fights with grappler Jack Hermansson and legend Anderson Silva. At the moment, the American is in excellent physical condition, and looking at his interview, it is clearly visible that talk about the title kindles a fire in him. Nevertheless, it is not necessary to testify to the development of skills, some progress in the stalls and other indicators. Jared has performed equally well in recent years, but is it enough to win the title? Is not a fact.

Comparative analysis

Comparing the participants in the main battle of UFC 276, it is easy to distinguish a significant difference not only in their dimensions, but also in the style of fighting. Israel will tower over the opponent by 10 centimeters, while gaining another 6 cm in arm span - given Cannonir's "pillar style", this gap will be more than enough to completely control the distance. It makes no sense to talk about the stalls in this story, if someone goes for the transfer, then most likely it will end in a clinch or control near the net, nothing more. But in the rack, an interesting picture can play out. In the initial rounds, you should not expect active actions from the champion, he will move a lot, keep the enemy on the jab, dry his legs with kicks and leave the line of attack, at the very first attempts of Jared to explode with a series.

At the same time, only sharp attacks will allow the latter to reach Adesanya's head, otherwise, he will be executed in the form of crown hooks on the slope, from which Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa fell, only stagnating in front of the New Zealander for a moment. A good kickboxing school, protection from transfers, caution and excellent timing will allow Easy to evade Cannonier's raids and break his flimsy defense from a long distance. But, he will definitely manage to get the champion and put him in a difficult position - he always does this, because a lot depends on how Israel is ready to cope with his power.

Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier Fight Prediction

A thunderous punch and a desire to win is what Jared will go into the octagon with. Except for the way Adesanya has handled these guys, it's hard to believe there's anything special waiting for him this time around. The only thing the challenger could be among the winners at the expense of is suddenness. For example, a sustained hard attack from the very first seconds, without any reconnaissance. However, one would be foolish to hope for that, just as one would hope for a victory on points in a 25 minute bout with the Last Lord of Styles. In fact, Cannonier has nothing to offer in terms of striking technique to his title-winning counterpart, but the latter, has the ability to solve this problem in a variety of ways. For this reason, there are two options as a bet: the fight is sure to go into the third round, as Jared is very tough and unlikely to fall without getting tired to a pulp, or we opt for a win for the reigning champion. Install the 1xbet app and place a bet on the favorite!

Prediction: Israel Adesanya to win.