The pair met in a middleweight main event bout at the UFC APEX and, after a dominant opening round by Rodrigues, it looked like Cannonier was in big trouble.
The Brazilian quickly established his range and connected with a host of heavy shots that forced Cannonier onto the back foot. And, twice, Rodrigues was able to drop the former title challenger with big punches as his size and power advantage dominated the early exchanges.
Cannonier gritted his teeth and managed to establish a foothold in the bout, as he took Round 2 on all three scorecards. Then, as Round 3 came to a close, he tipped the balance firmly in his favour with a huge shot.
A perfectly-timed elbow landed cleanly and dropped Rodriguez, was very fortunate to survive the round as Cannonier swarmed his man with heavy ground strikes as the round came to an end.
Even though the bell saved Rodrigues at the end of Round 3, it couldn’t help him at the start of Round 4 as Cannonier emerged from his corner determined not to let the Brazilian off the hook.
And, when the action resumed at the start of Round 4, “Killa Gorilla” unleashed a vicious salvo of strikes to overwhelm, then drop, Rodrigues 21 seconds after the restart for a huge come-from-behind victory.
In the co-main event, rising featherweight contender Youssef Zalal announced himself as a legitimate threat with a hard-earned unanimous decision victory over perennial contender Calvin Kattar.
There was also a big win for middleweight Edmen Shahbazyan, who showcased his striking skills with a superb first-round TKO finish of Dylan Budka, while lightweight Nazim Sadykhov delivered a statement victory of his own with a first-round doctor stoppage victory over Ismael Bonfim.
The main card kicked off with a unanimous decision win for Andre Petroski, who edged BJJ ace Rodolfo Vieira with scores of 29-28 across the board.
There was also a landmark moment for Julia Avila, as the women’s bantamweight fighter called time on her career following her unanimous decision defeat to Jacqueline Cavalcanti in the opening bout of the evening. Avila will look to continue competing in jiu-jitsu, but will be focusing her time on her young family after six fights in the UFC Octagon.
UFC Vegas 102: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Jared Cannonier def. Gergory Rodrigues via TKO (punches) – Round 4, 0:21
- Youssef Zalal def. Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Edmen Shahbazyan def. Dylan Budka via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:34
- Nazim Sadykhov def. Ismael Bonfim via TKO (doctor stoppage) – Round 1, 5:00
- Andre Petroski def. Rodolfo Vieira via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Jose Delgado def. Connor Matthews via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:58
- Angela Hill def. Ketlen Souza via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Rafael Estevam def. Jesus Aguilar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Gabriel Bonfim def. Khaos Williams via technical submission (D’Arce choke) – Round 2, 4:58
- Elijah Smith def. Vince Morales via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Valter Walker def. Don’Tale Mayes via submission (heel hook) – Round 1, 1:17
- Jacqueline Cavalcanti def. Julia Avila via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
