August 25, (THEWILL) – In a thrilling main event at UFC Vegas 96, Caio Borralho emerged victorious against Jared Cannonier after a gruelling five-round battle. The fight took place on Saturday at the APEX facility, with Borralho winning by unanimous decision. The judges scored the bout 49-45, 49-45, and 48-46 in favour of the Brazilian fighter.
The contest began with Borralho landing effective jabs and calf kicks, while Cannonier responded with powerful hooks. Both fighters had their moments throughout the match, but Borralho consistently landed more strikes. The third round saw Borralho hurt Cannonier badly, though the veteran managed to survive and fight back.
Cannonier found success in the fourth round with well-timed counter punches, even opening a cut under Borralho’s eye. However, Borralho regained control in the final round, dropping Cannonier with a devastating shot and attempting a submission. Despite the late onslaught, Cannonier managed to survive until the final bell.
This victory extends Borralho’s winning streak to 16 fights and improves his UFC record to 7-0. The result will likely see him climb into the top 10 of the middleweight rankings. In his post-fight interview, Borralho called out middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis, though he may need additional wins before earning a title shot.
For Cannonier, this marks his second consecutive loss, following a TKO defeat to Nassourdine Imavov in June 2023. The 40-year-old fighter showed tremendous heart and durability throughout the contest, despite coming up short on the scorecards.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
