Preview: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 24’ Finale

Light Heavyweights

Ion Cutelaba (12-2) vs. Jared Cannonier (8-1)

THE MATCHUP: Did you know there are light heavyweights on the UFC roster under the age of 35 who never competed in Pride Fighting Championships? Here are two of them. Cutelaba comes into this fight having just bested yet another young light heavyweight in Jonathan Wilson; in his debut, he lost a fairly competitive fight against light heavyweight prospect Misha Cirkunov. Where did all these light heavyweights come from?

As long as his body holds up, Cutelaba will be a hard man for any but the best to beat. He is an extremely aggressive fighter, willing to throw power with both hands from both stances. Defense is lacking for the time being, but Cutelaba is unbelievably durable, capable of absorbing thudding shots from powerful strikers without even taking a backward step. Cutelaba’s striking is every bit as relentless on the ground as it is in the standup, and he delights in letting his opponents scramble beneath him while he lines up power shots from a postured position.

Cannonier is in many ways similar to Cutelaba’s last opponent, albeit a more dangerous one. Wilson has pop, but Cannonier has been a heavyweight up to this point, packing more than enough power to put down the big boys. A southpaw, he is used to covering distance very quickly and does put together his punches well once he gets going. Cannonier has been hit and hurt more than once before, so even in this lighter weight class he will likely be the more fragile fighter. With that said, he is also harder to hit, keeping a high guard and deflecting his opponents’ offerings as he closes the gap.

THE ODDS: Cutelaba (-215), Cannonier (+180)

THE PICK: This is a tough one to call. Cutelaba’s chin has looked unbreakable in his first two UFC bouts, but Cannonier is a powerful puncher with a lot of upside. Then again, Cannonier throws less than Cutelaba and does leave himself open to counters once he lets those leaping shots go. Therefore, two questions for this fight: Who can take the punches and who can throw enough volume to win rounds? I will take Cutelaba’s iron chin and will over Cannonier’s flashy pop. The pick is Cutelaba by unanimous decision.

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