One-time UFC middleweight title contender Jared Cannonier is ranked No. 10 on the MMA Fighting Global Ranking going into his UFC Vegas 102 main event clash with Gregory Rodrigues this Saturday, and the Brazilian “Robocop” sees it as his ticket to the top of the division.
Rodrigues has won his past three in the organization with knockouts over Denis Tiuliulin and Brad Tavares followed by a decision against Christian Leroy Duncan, and vows to “continue looking up” in the rankings with a victory at the UFC APEX.
“I aim to become UFC champion, to fight for the belt,” Rodrigues told MMA Fighting. “This fight will put me in an excellent position to call someone out. I already have a name in mind, but Cannonier first. I have pictures of him all over my house. That’s my target now. It’s Robocop-style. As soon as I put him down, I’ll aim at the next one and continue my journey towards the belt.”
Rodrigues said Duda, a friend and “spiritual brother”, was the one with the idea behind putting photos of his opponents around the house to get him prepared for war. It all started prior to his third-round stoppage over Tavares, and Rodrigues’ wife decided to keep the plan going.
“I have photos in my living room, at the door when I leave, in the bathroom. There are photos in rooms I go the most, except for my daughter’s bedroom and mine,” Rodrigues said. “The rest of the house, it’s everywhere. I have nothing against him, brother, but he’s the one standing in front of me and he must be stopped. I like to stare are him. Not to familiarize with him, but to make it common. I’ve seen this guy already. I know who I’m fighting. It’s hard to fight someone you don’t know.”
Rodrigues tore every photo of Cannonier when he was about to leave for Las Vegas, but kept one with himself.
“When the mission is finished, I tear it and prepare for the next one,” Rodrigues said. “My wife tells me to keep looking at the photos. Even my daughter looks at him. She even wrote a song. “Cannonier, you’ll lose’ [laughs]. Everybody’s with me on this mission. And I love this, you know? I love this environment to keep me ready. I have more motivation to train and do what I need to do.”
Victorious in seven of nine octagon appearances with five knockouts to his credit, the former LFA middleweight champion said he’s thrilled to headline a UFC card for the first time, especially against a man that has shared the cage with stars the caliber of Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker and Anderson Silva since cutting down to 185 pounds — at light heavyweight, Cannonier also faced future champions Glover Teixeira and Jan Blachowicz.
“I never underestimate any of my opponents and it won’t start now,” Rodrigues said. “I’m preparing for his best and his worst. As I always say, I’m not fighting a name, I’m fighting a man. It’s another man standing there and regardless of everything we’ve done so far, I’ll make sure I’m ready for this moment. I always prepare for my opponent’s best — and if he’s less than what I expect from him, it’s the end of the line for him. I’ll kill him in there.”
Cannonier has only been finished three times in 25 pro fights, with losses to Nassourdine Imavov (a controversial fourth-round stoppage), Dominick Reyes and heavyweight Shawn Jordan, but Rodrigues said he’s not just another one. Cannonier is now 40 years old, and enters UFC Vegas 102 coming off back-to-back defeats to Imavov and Caio Borralho.
“He has a lot of holes and I’ll take advantage of every single one of them,” Borralho said. “He [went the distance] with a lot of guys he’s fought, but he’s never fought me. I believe I have all the tools to stop him by knockout or on the ground. I’ll find a way and there’s where he’ll stay. I don’t go the distance that much. I don’t think like, ‘I’m in the first round, there are four left.’ I like to think, ‘I have five minutes to kill this man. Those five minutes are over? I have five more.’ That puts me in a good position, both mentally and physically, to give my best.”
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