Jared Cannonier, Sean Strickland bring dangerous striking to UFC Vegas 66 clash

In 2022, the UFC had another banner year. The promotion has continued its wave of momentum since coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

To date, the UFC has sold out 29 consecutive live events since the pandemic. This Saturday, Dec. 17, the Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to UFC Apex in Las Vegas to close the book on the 2022 schedule. This Saturday’s UFC Vegas 66 card is packed with intriguing fights from top to bottom.

The card is headlined by a clash between dangerous strikers as No. 3-ranked Jared Cannonier and No. 7-ranked Sean Strickland look to get back into title contention in the middleweight division. Despite both men coming off losses, there is still a chance for them to reach their championship potential.

At UFC 281, Alex Potan Pereira knocked off longtime middleweight champion Israel Adesanya by knockout. With Adesanya previously cleaning out much of the division, a new champion creates hope for middleweight contenders like Cannonier or Strickland that they may one day have a shot at tasting UFC gold in the future. Cannonier will look to rebound after coming up short in his last octagon appearance versus former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in their title fight at UFC 276. In that fight Cannonier’s power was neutralized by the quickness of Adesanya. Still at age 38, the dangerous power of Cannonier is the best weapon in his arsenal, 10 of Cannonier’s 15 wins have come by knockout. Cannonier has recorded a victory via knockout in three different weight divisions. After entering the UFC as a heavyweight, Cannonier has found much of his success down at 185 pounds. Since moving down to middleweight Cannonier has compiled a 5-2 record highlighted by wins over Derek Brunson and Kelvin Gastelum. Strickland has won six out of his last seven fights including a 5-1 stint at middleweight. Strickland’s last loss came in his last octagon UFC 276 in a title eliminator versus current middleweight champion Alex Pereira. Strickland was knocked out in the first round. Other than his last loss Strickland has done well, posting wins over Uriah Hall and Jack Hermansson. Although Strickland likes to use his jab to manage distance, look for the Californian to use his wrestling to avoid the power of Cannonier. To win Saturday night, Cannonier must be more aggressive. At age 38, his window to becoming a champion is closing rather quickly. In terms of striking, Saturday’s main event comes down to the power of Cannonier versus the sheer volume of Strickland. This fight was originally scheduled for October, but Strickland was forced out of the fight due to a serious infection after getting a tooth caught in one of his fingers during sparring. Saturday’s main event will certainly be worth the wait.

In Saturday’s co-main event, promising lightweights Arman Tsarukyan and Damir Ismagulov square off in a top 15 clash. Since falling to Islam Makhachev in his UFC debut in 2019, Tsarukyan rattled off five consecutive wins before coming up short in a close decision versus Mateusz Gamrot in June. During this recent run of success, Tsarukyan has primarily used his wrestling and ground and pound as a path to victory. Tsarukyan holds notable wins over Matt “steamrolla” Frevola, and current PFL champion and former UFC fighter Oliver Aubin-Mercier. Saturday night, looks to knock Ismagulov from the ranks of the unbeaten in the UFC. Ismagulov holds an overall record of 24-1. Before coming to the UFC, Ismagulov was a champion in the

M-1 Global promotion. The 31-year-old enters the octagon Saturday night riding an absurd 19 fight winning streak. The winning streak includes Ismagulov’s 5-0 start in the UFC. Ismagulov’s

most recent win came at UFC Austin in a close decision versus Guram Kutateladze. Ismagulov will make just his third octagon appearance in the last three years. His inactivity is in part due to several weight misses in his Career. Facing Tsarukyan will be a step up in competition for Ismagulov. Tsarukyan possesses a very well-rounded skillset. The 26-year-old Russian has a significant strike accuracy of more than 50% and averages more than two takedowns per fight.

Also, on the main card at flyweight, Amir Albazi looks to push his UFC record to 4-0 versus debuting Dana White’s Contender Series alum Alessandro Costa. Albazi was originally scheduled to fight number four ranked Brandon Royval, but Royval was forced out of the fight after suffering a broken wrist. Facing Albazi on short notice will be a tall task for Costa, Albazi has recorded 13 finishes in his 15 wins overall. Albazi boasts four knockouts and nine wins by submission. For Costa, his path to victory is through his power and submission prowess. The Brazilian has recorded six wins by submission and three by knockout and 12 victories overall. If Albazi can get Costa, “the prince” could very well find himself in the top five in the near future.

At featherweight, Veterans Julian Erosa and Alex Bruce Leroy Caceres return to the octagon. Erosa has found some success in his third stint with the UFC. Since returning in 2020, Erosa has gone 5-1 with notable wins over Nate Landwehr, Charles Jourdain and most recently Hakeem Dawodu. Erosa is currently on a 3- fight win streak. Caceres brings a friend friendly style to the octagon, fans first got to know Caceres on season 12 of the Ultimate Fighter. Currently, Caceres has five out of his last six fights. Knocking on the door of the top 15, Caceres will look to bounce back Saturday night after a loss his last time out versus Sodiq Yusuff. Both men are willing to stand and, in the standup, on the ground with both men are in constant search of top position or submissions. This fight is extremely intriguing as both men try to claw their way into the top 15.

At lightweight, there will be guaranteed fireworks when Bobby Green meets Drew Dober inside the octagon Saturday night. Dober enters Saturday night consecutive highlight reel knockouts over Terrance McKinney and Rafael Alves. Green comes in having won two out of his left three fights. Most recently, Green came up short against current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev on short notice. Although Green’s aggressive striking approach has paid dividends in his UFC career, look for Green to possibly use his wrestling as a path to victory. Before transitioning into mixed martial arts, Green was a highly thought of wrestler out of Sacramento, California. Wrestling could be important when facing a dangerous striker like Dober. While rustling may play a part in this fight, expect this fight to stay standing as both men land over four significant strikes per minute. The knockout is also very much in play in this fight as both men have combined for 23 career knockouts.

In the main card opener at middleweight, Cody Brundage steps into the octagon on short notice to face Michal Oleksiejczuk. After a successful middleweight debut within knockout of Sam Alvey, Oleksiejczuk looks to get off to a 2-0 start at middleweight with a win over Brundage on Saturday night. Brundage looks to make it three in a row after impressive wins over Dalcha Lungiambula and Tresean Gore. Brundage a former wrestler at Newberry College, has one clear path to victory in this fight, and that is through his wrestling. Oleksiejczuk has shown very accurate, technical boxing in his career landing nearly 5 significant strikes per minute with an accuracy of 55%. Look for Oleksiejczuk to use his reach advantage to maintain distance and avoid big power shots from Brundage. Oleksiejczuk biggest weakness is his takedown defense which could be a problem against a wrestler like Brundage. This fight should be a classic striker versus grappler matchup, but Brundage has defensive holes in his striking that Oleksiejczuk could take advantage of.

In Saturdays featured prelim, we go to the strawweight division for a seemingly even matchup between Cheyanne “the warrior princess” Vlismas and Cory McKenna. Both women came to the UFC off the 2020 season of Dana White’s Contender Series. Now, they both have an identical overall record of 7-2 and 2-1 in the UFC. Returning to the cage for the first time since December 2021, Vlismas looks for her third consecutive win. Vlismas uses a variety of striking attacks, the 27-year-old has power in both her punches and kicks. Vlismas who are use her push kick to manage distance on the ground, Vlismas can be somewhat of a submission threat. For McKenna, finding consistency will be key to her future success. The 23-year-old native of Wales bounced back nicely from her disappointing loss to Elise Reed, with a submission victory over Miranda Granger in August. Look for McKenna to use her kicks to get inside range in order to clinch. Once inside the clinch, McKenna’s strength advantage should allow her to wrestle effectively. Saturday night presents an opportunity for both young strawweights to take another step towards reaching their full potential.

Continuing on the prelims at welterweight, the clash between Jake Matthews and Matthew Semelsberger is brimming with fight of the night potential. When Matthews first entered the UFC touted as the next star out of Australia, it seemed like Matthews was being crushed by the weight of expectation. Now at age 28, Matthews has found himself, going 7-2 since moving up to welterweight. At UFC 275, Matthews shocked the world knocking out Andre Fialho to secure an upset win. His opponent, Semelsberger looks to get back on track after falling to Alex Morono at UFC 277. At 4-2 in the UFC, Semelsberger is an explosive striker with six out of his 10 wins coming by knockout. The best example of his explosiveness can be shown in his 15 second demolition of Martin Sano at UFC 266 in September 2021. Semelsberger’s lack of adequate takedown defense could be a major problem against a fighter like Matthews. Matthews uses his strikes as a method to get inside and setup takedowns. Semelesberger’s inability to wrestle Can be seen in the AJ Fletcher fight where Fletcher landed 4 takedowns. At middleweight, Dana white’s contender series alum Julian Marquez brings his 100 percent finish rate into Saturday’s clash with Deron Winn. In his 9 fights Marquez has notched 6 wins by knockout and three by submission. Marquez enters Saturday night looking to rebound from his brutal knockout at the hands of “RoboCop Gregory Rodrigues in June at UFC Austin. Winn, needs a victory badly having gone 2-3 in his first five UFC appearances. For Marquez regardless of the outcome Saturday night, his association with James Krause and Glory MMA may cause problems for his future in the UFC. Krause is the face and root of all the trouble with the UFC betting scandal over the last month. Focusing on the fight, Marquez brings excellent striking with him into the octagon. For Winn, the most likely path the victory is through his wrestling. Winn was a 3-time State champion in the state of Missouri and wrestled collegiately at Lindenwood University. At bantamweight number 15 ranked said Nurmagomedov looks for his fourth consecutive win facing Saidyokub Kakhramonov. Recently, Nurmagomedov has notched impressive wins over Cody Stamann and Douglas Silva de Andrade. Kakhramonov looks to push his UFC record to 3-0 Saturday night after previously earning wins over Trevin Jones and Ronnie Lawrence. Both men have the potential to become top 10 fighters over the course of their career in the UFC. Nurmagomedov possesses the ability to wrestle, along with a diverse striking approach. Look for Nurmagomedov to be patient with His shots and use his kicks to maintain distance. Kakhramonov has excelled in his early tenure in the UFC. His tenancy to throw caution to the wind in his striking, coupled with his dominant wrestling makes for a very intriguing fight. The outcome of this fight could have a lot to say about the long-term future of both men in one of the UFC’s deepest divisions. At lightweight, Rafa Garcia takes on 23-year-old Chinese

prospect Maheshate. After consecutive losses began Garcia’s career in the UFC, the 28-year-old rattled off consecutive wins over Jesse Ronson and Natan Leavy. Most recently, Garcia fell back under .500 if you’re suffering a short notice loss to Drakar Klose at UFC 277 Garcia will look to earn a much-needed victory Saturday night versus the powerful Maheshate. In June Maheshate made some noise knocking out Steve Garcia with a vicious right hand in his debut in the UFC. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum Will look to earn his 10th victory overall

and improve to 2-0 in the UFC on Saturday night. Garcia will look to set the pace and brawl with Maheshate. Given the power of Maheshate, brawling with him may not be a good idea. Look for Garcia to attempt to wrestle in an effort to neutralize the power of Maheshate. Garcia averages nearly 4 takedowns per fight. Garcia’s Sheer toughness and cardio give him a chance in this fight versus A much taller Maheshate. Maheshate’s lack of head movement could also be detrimental in his quest for victory Saturday night. Can García stop the young top prospect in the tracks? Or will Maheshate continue His climb up the rankings. At welterweight, the Ultimate Fighter season 29 middleweight champion Bryan battle Steps in the octagon on short notice to face Rinat Fakhretdinov. Battle, the 28-year-old North Carolina native looks to move to 2-0 at middleweight, and 4-0 overall in the UFC. After a head kick knockout of Takashi Sato, in his last outing. Battle will look to continue his success versus Fakhretdinov. Fakhretdinov brings an aggressive style to the cage that will make for an interesting stylistic matchup against Battle. Battle is a remarkably good athletes with ability to both strike and go to the ground to look for submissions. In the stand up, Battle leans on his kicks as a recipe for success. On the ground, Battle can be a submission threat, as evidenced by his improbable win over Andre Petrovski on the Ultimate Fighter. For battle, the ground may be the path of least resistance against Fakhretdinov Who has substantial power. For Fakhretdinov,11 of his 19 wins have come via knockout. This fight is an intriguing opportunity for both men to take the next step towards the welterweight top 15. The always entertaining number 12 ranked Manel Kape makes his return to the octagon for the first time in more than a year. Kape brings his explosive striking into the octagon as he looks for his third consecutive win facing number nine ranked David Dvorak in a clash between top 15 mainstays. To open the night, bantamweight prospects Journey Newson and Sergey Morozov square off. Saturday night, both men enter the octagon searching for a consistent winning formula. Saturday’s 14- fight card is a great way to close the curtain on the 2022 schedule before heading into a break for Christmas and New Year’s. All the action can be seen on ESPN plus, beginning with the prelims at 4 PM ET, and continuing with the main card at 7 PM ET.