August is just about over. Summer days have trickled down to a precious few in advance of the autumnal equinox next month, but MMA action is only continuing to heat up. This Saturday night, the sport’s top promotion, the UFC returns to its Las Vegas homebase for its final event of the eighth month of the year.
For the first time since the announcement was made that it would be temporarily closing for renovations later on in the fall, the UFC Apex plays host to another UFC Fight Night, UFC on ESPN 62. Live coverage begins at 7 pm ET/ 4 pm PT on ESPN+ inside the United States with the prelims before moving over to ESPN proper at 10 pm ET/ 7 pm PT for the main card.
Middleweights Take to Apex for UFC on ESPN 62 Main Event
In addition to this year’s finals in The Ultimate Fighter, a full night of fights are planned. Highlighting the night’s activities is a showdown between ranked combatants at 185 lbs. in the UFC on ESPN 62 main event.
No. 5 contender Jared Cannonier (17-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) meets up with No. 12 contender Caio Borralho (16-1, 1 NC MMA, 6-0 UFC) in the headlining affair on Saturday evening. As with all UFC main events, this one is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close the show.
"THERE'S YOUR STATEMENT MADE" ✅
Jared Cannonier makes the final walk of the night Saturday at #UFCVegas96! pic.twitter.com/fYYx6VBOhO
— UFC (@ufc) August 19, 2024
UFC on ESPN 62 Main Event Fighter Comparison and Betting Odds
Heading into the UFC on ESPN 62 main event on Saturday night, Caio Borralho stands as the taller man at 6-foot-1, compared to Jared Cannonier’s 5-foot-11 frame. The latter owns a 2 1/2-inch reach advantage (77 1/2 inches to 75 inches even) over the latter, while Borralho owns a half-inch leg reach advantage (42 inches even to 41 1/2 inches) over Cannonier.
Currently, the oddsmakers have Caio Borralho installed as a -230 favorite on the money line, while Jared Cannonier counters as a +190 underdog. If you plan on betting on this or any other fight happening this weekend, please wager responsibly.
Jared Cannonier Facing Quick Turnaround Ahead of Fight Saturday
Jared Cannonier enters the UFC on ESPN 62 main event on Saturday having posted a record of 3-2 in his last five fights. Most recently, he saw his two-fight winning streak snapped at the hands of Nassourdine Imavov (14-4, 1 NC MMA, 6-2, 1 NC UFC) in questionable fashion by fourth-round knockout during UFC Louisville from the Yum! Center on the University of Louisville’s campus on June 8.
After that match, Cannonier made an appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani to give his two cents on the finish.
“When it happened, it was gut-wrenching, to say the least,” Cannonier began. “I definitely took some time [and] had to collect myself. I had to go back and re-watch the fight and really relive the whole thing all over again. It was really gut-wrenching. The opportunity to do great things was stolen from me in that moment.”
Referee Jason Herzog was assigned the main event that late spring night and stepped in, calling the contest in favor of Imavov while Cannonier was actively making an effort to dodge subsequent shots after the former absorbed a right hook. By the time that Cannonier walks to the cage on Saturday, just 77 days will have passed between fights, but he asked for a quick turnaround this time out.
Only time will tell if the abbreviated training camp paid off in the UFC on ESPN 62 main event.
Caio Borralho Aiming for 16th Consecutive Win on Saturday Night
In the other corner, Caio Borralho has posted a perfect 5-0 mark in his last five fights. At the moment, he’s won 15 fights in a row.
Back in May of this year, he bested Paul Craig (17-8-1 MMA, 9-8-1 UFC) by way of second-round knockout (right cross) during UFC 301 from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Borralho talked about his next fight in an interview with Andreas Hale of ESPN.
“I’m the new breed of the division,” Borralho mentioned. “People already know who I am, but now people are going to put me in the contender mix. After a good finish against Jared, I think there will be no conversation about it, I’ll be the next contender [at middleweight.]
Caio Borralho is a man who needed to come back for a second shot at a contract on Contender Series in October of 2021, but he hasn’t slowed down since. Will he get the most important win of his career this weekend?
Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction
Stylistically, the UFC on ESPN 62 main event looks to favor Caio Borralho, a black belt in Muay-Thai and brown belt in judo, compared to Jared Cannonier’s status as a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Cannonier Has To Wear Borralho Down
Jared Cannonier’s plan of attack in this UFC on ESPN 62 main event is going to be a simple one: Mix up his strikes and stuff takedowns. In the first round of his fight against Kelvin Gastelum three years ago, while both fighters exchanged kicks, Cannonier uncorked a leg kick, immediately following it up with one to the body.
Later on in the period, he kept Gastelum honest with a punch to the head, while still chopping away with kicks. This pace continued throughout the fight, including a knockdown of Gastelum thanks to a right hook in round three. Although Gastelum stood back up, he would never be able to put Cannonier on the canvas.
Throughout the fight, Cannonier successfully defended all eight of Gastelum’s takedown efforts en route to a victory by decision by the end of the contracted 25 minutes. Given what happened to Cannonier in Kentucky earlier on in the year, he’ll want to leave no doubt when he walks to the cage at the UFC Apex on Saturday. A clinical performance is what it’ll take.
Borralho a Great Striker
In the other corner, Caio Borralho has to use his fists to neutralize Kelvin Gastelum’s gameplan on Saturday night. Just look at his fight against Paul Craig earlier on in the spring.
Round two of that fight saw Borralho continue what he did in the first round: Land shots to Craig’s head. Perhaps the most seminal moment of the round happened a minute in, when he landed a knee to put Craig on the canvas, if only for a few seconds.
With Craig now stunned, Borralho landed a combination to back him up against the cage fence and put him down on the mat to stay. If Borralho can hit on combinations, the fight’s a wrap.
Final Thoughts
With Dricus du Plessis already having defended the UFC Middleweight Championship last Saturday, you can bet that he’ll be watching the UFC on ESPN 62 main event with interest this weekend. The winner could be on the fast track to facing du Plessis for the belt at a later date.
Prediction: Jared Cannonier by Unanimous Decision.
