Jared Cannonier, nearing his 41st birthday, impressively overcame an early setback to defeat Gregory Rodrigues with a fourth-round knockout in UFC Vegas 102, snapping a two-fight losing streak and earning praise from peers for his resilience and performance.
Jared Cannonier’s no stranger to five-round main events.
In his seventh time headlining a UFC fight, he defied expectations. Cannonier outlasted the rising middleweight star Gregory Rodrigues, delivering a knockout flurry in the fourth round. This victory snapped a two-fight losing streak, saving him from an unprecedented three consecutive losses.
And all this just shy of his 41st birthday! There were tense moments, especially in the first round when Rodrigues’ aggression had him hitting the mat. But Cannonier leaned on his grit and experience to survive those initial five minutes. By the end of Round 3, he nearly finished Rodrigues, needing only 21 seconds into Round 4 to clinch the win.
His peers couldn’t help but express their admiration for his comeback. UFC welterweight champ Belal Muhammad tweeted, “He still got it.” Analyst Alan Jouban chimed in with praise, “For Cannonier to be able to look that good at 40, and survive that first round. Super impressive stuff.”
“Not slowing down,” he added.
Check out more fighter reactions to the UFC Vegas 102 main event below.
For Cannonier to be able to look that good at 40, and survive that first round. Super impressive stuff. Not slowing down. #UFCVegas102
— Alan Jouban (@AlanJouban)
Wow, Canonier steals round 3 with that short elbow and GnP and now seals the deal in round 4 with a TKO stoppage. RoboCop struggles again with efficiency/pacing himself.
— Kenny Florian (@kennyflorian)
Rodrigues head must be crazy hard!!! Cannonier landed a CLEAN hook and his hand bounced back while Rodrigues head stood still!! THATS CRAZY!! lol #ufc #ufcfightnight
— Corey ‘Overtime’ Anderson (@CoreyA_MMA)
These are typically the fights where Robocop comes back and wins.
Really cool to see Jared Cannonier bounce back this way!
Very impressive. @ufc #UFCVegas102— #OnAmission4Gold (@KelvinGastelum)