UFC 254: Whittaker wins via unanimous decision against Cannonier, will have his second date with Adesanya

UFC 254: Whittaker wins via unanimous decision against Cannonier, will have his second date with Adesanya
Whittaker and Cannonier

Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier met each other in the co-main event of the biggest card of the year, UFC 254. UFC 254 has been one of the most hyped cards, one of the reasons is because of this fight. The #1 and #2 went head to head.

The fight between “The Reaper” and “Killa Gorilla” was supposed to decide who will fight UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya next. The former champion, Whittaker had some experience leading up to the fight. On the other hand, for Cannonier this was his toughest fight till date. Both fighters came to fight to accomplish one goal: a chance to fight for the Middleweight belt.

Fight Analysis

Round 1 started off with Whittaker attacking Cannonier with the vicious leg kicks. Whittaker landed a beautiful kick on the upper body. A jab by the former champ. Cannonier started to set up the pace and attacks the legs. Whittaker hit Cannonier with some leg kicks of his own. However, Cannonier specifically started to attack those. Whittaker’s legs were already red and numb. But then, Whittaker went high uptown with a rocking face kick.

FS Video

Round 2 started as Cannonier tried to inflict damage on Whittker’s legs. Whittaker continued to hunt Cannonier’s head. Cannonier continued to kick Whittaker’s legs from the outside. There was visible redness on his legs. A great combination by the former champ rocked the #2 fighter. Both traded significant shots. Whittaker took Cannonier down but Cannonier quickly got back up. Cannonier still attacked Whittaker’s legs. End of Round 2.

Whittaker

Round 3 Whittaker kept the composure. He rocked Cannonier with a beautiful head kick. Robert took Cannonier down and scored a take down. On full mount, Whittaker started to pounce on Cannonier. He tried to set him up with asubmission move. Cannonier got back up, had Whittaker on the fence. Both came back on their feet. Whittaker had the upper hand with 60 seconds left. Cannonier started to attack with a right hook. Cannonier knew he had less time and started to unleash his power. However, he could not inflict enough damage to win the round.

Conclusion

After going to the judges scorecards, all judges scored the contest 29-28. The winner by unanimous decision, Robert Whittaker. Whittaker will face Adesanya for the UFC Middleweight Championship.

Also Read: UFC 254: “Megatron” Hawes knocks Malkoun out cold in just 18 seconds!