The nerd had to give it his all to secure the biggest win of his UFC career.
Caio Borrallo and Jared Cannonier battled nonstop for 25 minutes in the main event of UFC on ESPN 62. And in the end, the fight-hardened Borrallo held on a bit longer to earn a unanimous decision victory by scores of 49-45, 49-45, 48-46.
A win over No. 5-ranked Cannonier would catapult the No. 12-ranked Borrallo to the top of UFC’s official middleweight rankings, and Borrallo himself made it clear that’s where he should be.
“Hopefully my name will be in the top five on Tuesday,” Borrallo, who remains unbeaten in UFC, said in a post-fight interview with Michael Bisping.
Borrallo (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) started strong with a well-chosen and calculated first round, but Cannonier (17-8 MMA, 10-8 UFC) regained his confidence in the second round and appeared to wobble Borrallo at one point. But in the third round, Borrallo visibly wobbled Cannonier with a powerful straight left in the final minute, splitting a closely fought round. The fight continued at a high pace in the fourth round, with Cannonier landing a powerful combination that shattered Borrallo’s right eye.
Entering the fifth round, there was no reason for either fighter to feel comfortable, and it showed in their approach. Borrallo and Cannonier were still slipping, dipping and countering, but with under two minutes left, Borrallo erased all doubts with a right hook followed by a hard left that sent Cannonier to the canvas. Borrallo controlled the remaining rounds, going for an arm triangle choke to seal the victory.
After his hard-fought victory, Borrallo donned his trademark thick, black-rimmed glasses with tape down the middle and boldly proclaimed the takeover.
“I’m a new face (at middleweight) with some scars,” Borrallo said. “Anyone who sees these glasses should be scared because we are fighting nerds. We are coming to dominate!”
Below are complete results from UFC on ESPN 62.
Kaio Borrallo defeated Jared Cannonier by unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 48-46) Tabatha Ricci defeated Angela Hill by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Ryan Roeder defeated Robert Valentin by TKO (ground and pound) – Round 2, 1:49 Myron Santos defeated Khan Ofri by knockout (punches) – Round 2, 1:30 Michael Morales defeated Neil Magny by TKO (ground and pound) – Round 1, 4:39 Gerald Meerschaert defeated Edmen Shahbazyan by submission (arm triangle choke) – Round 2, 4:12 Francis Marshall defeated Edinburgh Bloomberg. Denis Buzkuja wins by split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28) Zach Reese defeats Jose Medina by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) Viacheslav Borshev defeats James Lontop by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27) Jacqueline Cavalcanti defeats Josiane Nunes by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 27-30) Wang Cong defeats Victoria Leonardo by knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:02
For more on the card, check out MMA Junkie’s UFC on ESPN 62 event hub.
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