All RSS feed content is owned by the respective 3rd party website.
UFC middleweight Jared Cannonier has been a mainstay in the UFC for over a decade. The American striker has enjoyed success over three weight classes and maintains a winning record in the promotion.
While ‘The Killa Gorilla’ enters the twilight years of his career, he isn’t taking a step back, as the UFC continues to throw him into main event fights with the toughest competition available. Cannonier takes on phenomenal Brazilian standout Gregory Rodrigues in the main event of UFC Vegas 102 on February 15, 2025.
Here’s everything you need to know about Jared Cannonier.
Where is Jared Cannonier from?
Jared Christopher Cannonier was born in Dallas, Texas. Before competing in professional MMA, He served in the US Army, where he had his first combat experience during the Army’s combative training courses. (h/t ESPN).
He was discharged after testing positive for marijuana and worked in Alaska for the Federal Aviation Administration working maintenance. Cannonier debuted in professional MMA in 2011.
Jared Cannonier age, weight, and height
As of February 13, 2025, Cannonier is 40 years old. He competes in the UFC’s middleweight division at 185 lbs but has competed as high as 241 lbs.
Cannonier is listed at five feet 11 inches tall, with a disclosed reach of 77.5 inches.
What is Jared Cannonier’s MMA record?
Cannonier is 17-8 in professional MMA. He has nine wins by knockout, three by submission, and five by decision.
| Method | Wins | Losses |
| KO/TKO | 9 | 3 |
| Submission | 3 | 0 |
| Decision | 5 | 5 |
Jared Cannonier debuted as a heavyweight in the UFC
Cannonier debuted in the UFC as a heavyweight after going 7-0 on the Alaskan regional circuit.
[embedded content]
MORE BLOODY ELBOW NEWS
‘The Killa Gorilla’ UFC ranking
Entering his fight with Rodrigues at UFC Vegas 102, Cannonier is the UFC’s No. 7-ranked middleweight.
Jared Cannonier’s MMA losses
Cannonier has eight losses in professional MMA, all of which have come in the UFC. His first defeat was a knockout loss to Shawn Jordan in his UFC debut at heavyweight in 2015. Following this, Cannonier picked up two more wins as a light heavyweight before losing a decision to future champion Glover Teixeira.
Cannonier rebounded from this loss by knocking out Nick Roehrick as part of The Ultimate Fighter Season 25 Finale. After this, Cannonier endured his first losing streak at the hands of future champion Jan Blachowicz and future two-time title contender Dominick Reyes. His loss to Reyes forced Cannonier to move to middleweight.
As a first-time middleweight, Cannonier picked up three emphatic knockout victories, including an injury victory over Anderson Silva and a knockout in his first main event appearance against perennial middleweight contender Jack Hermansson.
Jared Cannonier broke his arm fighting Robert Whittaker
Cannonier’s win streak would be snapped, literally and figuratively, by former middleweight king Robert Whittaker on Khabib Nurmagomedov’s UFC 254 retirement card. ‘Bobby Knuckles’ broke Cannonier’s forearm with the very first kick he threw – winning a unanimous decision over three rounds.
In his post-fight statement, Cannonier gave props to Whittaker and admitted, “I’ll take my L [loss] with pride.”
[embedded content]
Jared Cannonier challenged Israel Adesanya’s middleweight title
After losing to Whittaker, Cannonier bounced back with two more victories against Kelvin Gastelum and Derek Brunson. He was rewarded with his first – and only – UFC title shot against then-dominant champion Israel Adesanya. ‘Stylebender’ prodded away at Cannonier for a shutout decision victory.
Jared Cannonier defeated Sean Strickland
Following his defeat to Adesanya, Cannonier returned to his winning ways with a two-fight streak, including a hard-fought split decision over Sean Strickland. The two middleweights stood and traded on the feet for a full five rounds; 56.7 percent of 922 fans scored the fight for Strickland, per MMA Decisions.
Cannonier went on to fight Nassourdine Imavov in the main event of UFC Louisville in June 2024. He lost by a contentious TKO in the fourth round. The consensus is that Cannonier-Imavov was an early stoppage, and Cannonier demanded a rematch.
Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho
Despite this, Cannonier fought again in 2024 against rising contender Caio Borralho. The Brazilian fighter battered Cannonier from pillar to post, almost securing a knockout in the fifth round. Cannonier lost by unanimous decision and fights to break his two-fight losing streak against Rodrigues four months later.
[embedded content]
Jared Cannonier’s Instagram and social media accounts
Cannonier holds down over 150,000 followers on Instagram. Here, he shares training insights, giveaways, and fight news. He can be followed at @killagorillamma. He can also be found on Facebook at jared.cannonier, where more personal insights into his life are available.
Jared Cannonier’s UFC stats
| Significant strikes landed per minute | 4.49 |
| Significant strikes accuracy | 50% |
| Significant strikes absorbed per minute | 4.39 |
| Significant strike defense | 56% |
| Takedown average per 15 minutes | 0.42 |
| Takedown accuracy | 46% |
| Takedown defense | 62% |
| Submissions attempted per 15 minutes | 0 |
| UFC knockdowns scored | 5 |
| UFC knockdowns suffered | 5 |
