Report: Jared Cannonier vs Sean Strickland targeted for main event on October 15

A middleweight contest between two fighters who most recently came up short in their respective fights at UFC 276 is reportedly being targeted to serve as the main event on October 15. On Wednesday evening, MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani reported the news that a fight between Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland is scheduled to serve as the main event on October 15.

Jared Cannonier x Sean Strickland is the plan for the Oct. 15 show, sources say. Main event. Likely Apex. Not signed but that’s the target.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) August 11, 2022

Both fighters came up short at UFC 276 last month in their respective fights, as Jared Cannonier was fighting in his first title fight opportunity against champion Israel Adesanya. Cannonier had won two straight in the middleweight division before getting his fight against Adesanya, and his only other loss in the division has come to former champion Robert Whittaker. During his time in the division, Cannonier has picked up notable wins over Anderson Silva, Jack Hermansson, Kelvin Gastelum, and Derek Brunson.

Sean Strickland appeared to be riding momentum towards a title fight opportunity heading into UFC 276, but instead he saw his six-fight winning streak coming to a halt. Strickland suffered a first-round knockout loss to Alex Pereira at UFC 276, and last week it was announced that Pereira would face champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 281 in November. Before his winning streak was snapped, Strickland picked up notable wins over the likes of Hermansson, Uriah Hall, Krzysztof Jotko, and Brendan Allen.

While this may not serve as a title eliminator fight, the winner between Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland will be in a more opportunistic place to work their way back into the top of the middleweight division and eventually, be back in the title fight conversation.

Here are the fights currently scheduled for the October 15 fight night card.

• Jared Cannonier vs Sean Strickland
• Jonathan Martinez vs Cub Swanson
• Askar Askarov vs Brandon Royval
• Alexa Grasso vs Viviane Araujo
• Piera Rodriguez vs Sam Hughes
• C.J. Vergara vs Tatsuro Taira
• Mana Martinez vs Brandon Davis

Mike Pendleton

Mike Pendleton is a current contributor to MyMMANews while also hosting his "On The Mic" podcast and is a former Associate Producer at Sirius XM's Fight Nation. With a special passion for interviewing and talking to the very best around the fight game, you can read or listen to Mike's work across his multiple outlets. Follow me on Twitter: @MP2310

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