Former title challenger Jared Cannonier spoke to the press at the official UFC Vegas 66 media day ahead of his main event …
everybody go for it hey Jared how you doing I’m doing good stuff Sean Strickland’s an interesting character but when it comes to his fight style and stuff what exactly are you expecting from him on Saturday uh I’m expecting him to I know he wants to get in my face he says he wants to go to the center of the Octagon stand there and and Duke it out uh I expect him to same old Sean Strickland put the pressure on try to walk me down stick his jab in my face a couple of kicks maybe get his right hand off uh that’s what I expect him to try to do um we’ve got answers for those attempts and if he doesn’t want to do any of that I I’ll be more than happy to leave the dance in a way does that not play into your your hands right because if you look at this fight with Pereira Pereira hits hard you hit hard this comparisons there if he comes forward and plots forward like that you know right away that you can hit him and potentially knock him out no absolutely that’s uh that’s the name of the game you know when we close the distance there’s opportunity to get hit um he closes the distance more uh more what’s the word it does it more more often than most right uh he’s off sometimes may even seem stubborn in his forward pressure but no he’s a smart fighter it’s not just all four you know he’ll move and he avoids punches and stuff like that so um I’m expecting a good challenge out of him obviously him as a person is kind of unique right he was up here for half an hour calling us all sorts of names are you expecting him to sort of play around in the cage maybe talk some or anything like that or does that just not even cross your mind at all I mean if he’s doing it then I’m not doing my job well enough you know I’m not putting the pressure on him to make him you know uh focus more on the fight as opposed to focusing on talking crap and taking me out of my element so um no I think he’ll have his hands full a little full to be talking some crap and if he is talking crap good on him is there an opportunity in this fight right because the champion just changed hands and obviously they’ll rematch but if Alex wins that fight and you win this one you’ve got as good a claim as any in the division to get a shot at the new champion I suppose so me uh what Robert Whitaker is up there and I’m sure the uh rematch between Israel and Alex is up there as well so yeah I’m right there so a good old-fashioned ass whooping Saturday night put my name right there in the mix who do you fancy in that rematch between Israel and Alex it doesn’t matter right we see how it went the first time all right it could be written in the stars that easy may not may never beat him you know it could be ridden in the Stars you know because I thought he was winning that fight and I think the same thing happened in their fighting kicks about kickboxing he was scoring and winning and he got caught right so uh the nature of the Beast I guess there’s not much you can do to avoid that sort of thing just be a little bit sharper a little bit more a little bit better you know more evasive maybe who knows uh how do I see the rematch going I don’t know man who knows how every match goes do you believe in that sort of stuff where like there are some guys who just have your number and no matter how many times you fight you won’t beat them or no you don’t no no I didn’t I didn’t I didn’t say it to I didn’t mean it like that when I said that I meant to like it’s crazy that he lost the fight the way he lost the fight it’s unfortunate he was winning that fight you know a few more minutes he would have retained the title and wipe the Slate well essentially clear the Slate of the past and all that bull crap that uh we keep bringing up but um no that’s not I’m not saying that Alex beats Israel every time by no means no man beats no man every time that’s not what we do here you know especially at this level we’re all good we’re all great we’re all trying to be the best um but uh it’s not a static status that we can have we’re not just the best and I’m the best forever it doesn’t matter what happens in the future no just Ebbs and flow to this so you’re good one day somebody else gonna be better you the next okay hey Jared um what did you think of the Izzy versus uh pierra stoppage I I could see the uh the logic in both rationales you know um it’s championship fight let them go out on this Shield uh on one hand and on the other hand you know he was he seemed compromised he was definitely hurt against the fence um Alex had all Alex had to do was raise a knee or a shin to really do some lasting damage right uh the ref is there to protect the fighters um it could be taken many different ways uh for they people say that he wasn’t defending himself but Israel Israel doesn’t necessarily run with the high and tight guard you know he moves his head he uses head movement and footwork and that’s what he was doing that’s what it seemed like he was doing he took that shot that last hook and then he started to swing his head to the other side so he was still in motion I think he was still coherent um in the process of recovery he could have made it through that or he could have taken another big shot and you know he would have had a longer suspension and maybe some scarring on his brain tissue but um I don’t to be honest I don’t uh pick one option over the other one opinion over the other I just understand them both I wanted to go back to UFC 276 man uh what were the emotions like after after that fight well naturally disappointment right after the fight uh it’s I mean I’d like to say it gets easier but it doesn’t you know I went back to the locker room and shed a few tears and and then um that was it you know uh received condolences from you know fans and friends and family and things like that but essentially on the way home from the arena I was over it you know I was ready to move on and get better learn from the experience um it still sucked you know the sting Stills there is still there but nobody I don’t necessarily focus on the negative it’s all about the positive it seemed like you wanted to get right back to work like you had this fight book quickly and you were supposed to fight a couple months ago like were you just ready to kind of like Get over that loss and get back to the one column like as quick as you can well a lot of times guys fight for the title and uh they’re off for a long time you know I don’t know what they’re doing if they’re just enjoying the big payday or what I don’t know um but um for me that’s not what I want I don’t like long wait long layoffs 2020 2021 I had long layoffs due to injuries uh earlier in my career I had to have layoffs due to uh my uh do the work my other job that I had so um and I’m no spring chicken so uh uh I’m not getting any younger not to say that I’m getting older I am getting better but uh the fact remains that we can’t do this forever so I’m trying to get as much out of it as I can getting that title 16 red rubies on that belt my name uh branded in history what lessons did you take from your loss to Israel uh I I tend to wait a bit you know um I tend to allow my opponents to to go first to try to capitalize counter-intuitive or intercepting them um um so that’s one thing I’ve been working on up in that upping my output you know increasing my numbers I don’t I have low uh punch counts in my fights um not said it’s a bad thing that’s all that I need to get the job done you know um I’m very accurate in my Approach um but I still I need to do more especially in that fight against Israel is it’s apparent that I needed to do more so um doesn’t take a rocket science to watch that fight and figure that out especially when I go and relive it and re-experience it all over again there’s so many frustrations that come up and um things that I’ve continued to work on so yeah did you see the backlash that he got from the fight like he won the fight retained his title but he got backlash and every and everybody on him yeah everybody on him um and I don’t think he deserved that you know he did exactly what I expected him to do avoid the danger that I bring and try to lay down his game as best as they can and I did the exact same thing that I always do avoid the danger that they bring and shut down the dangers that they have and try to bring the damage to them so and that’s what you get you know I’m saying when you get two of the best going at it things like this happen it ain’t going to be two people knocking the out of each other for five five for five five minute rounds that’s not what the best is the best doesn’t get hit the best hits and not get hit and I think we did that people saw that and the ignorance showed they don’t know most people don’t know what they’re looking at they just want to see Carnage viscera Mayhem chaos that’s what they Thrive off of but um and when I was in there I felt at peace a Serene sense of of power if you will you know so that I can apply to my opponent if you will I’m sure he felt the same so um that’s that I don’t that’s not artistic side of it if you will that Creative Energy in us that we use to express mixed martial arts but a lot of people don’t recognize it so they’re seething at the at the uh at the jowls and you know grinding and Grading and they want to see some blood in action and uh I’m sure they’ll get satiated with this next fight against Sean Strickland and finally uh what’d you think of as Undertaker walk out can’t go wrong with The Undertaker man I thought I thought it was cool dude he had to earn the Hat he was all stoic it’s you know it’s it’s a lot right it’s uh you got to get into character you got to go he’s a professional he can do it right he did it he can go out there have a whole dance number you know what I’m saying do a whole Broadway number and then get in the octagon and win title so uh who doesn’t love the Undertaker you know what I’m saying so he did it but I didn’t I sure as hell didn’t end up in anybody’s grave that’s for damn sure that is true thanks man hey Jared I just got one for you um what was there was there frustration with having to push this fight back so far I wouldn’t say no no frustration um no I don’t I try I try my best not to have emotional responses unless they’re solicited like if somebody’s trying to break into my house I’m I’m pissed off and I’m gonna let you know you know uh on top of that you can’t just come in here I got to protect my things there’s a bunch of things that go on to it but um what was that question were you frustrated with having to wait two months oh okay um no uh for me it was just more time to prepare to build off of the things that we were working on anyway um I don’t need an opponent to go to the gym and train and help make myself better I’m doing that automatically um I don’t have fight camps I have life Camp you know um so I’m always in the gym I’m always working my ass off um and only time I really focus on one person in the uh specifically is when I get the contracts when he had his situation I understood the dude had infection had to have surgery there’s nothing I can do about that and why would I be upset that this unfortunate thing happened to him because I know he wants to get an air fight I’m sure he wasn’t too happy with it uh himself but all about the silver line and all about the the positives in in all aspects of it you know so I was able to train more further ingrained what we were working on prior to this oil you know for the last booking and uh even more so you weren’t trying to get you know get in there quicker with somebody else you really wanted to make sure you got this specific fight no I did want to get in there quickly you know uh but for the quick one we chose Sean Strickland and then circumstances happened I wasn’t like I want a new person now to be honest at the point there wasn’t nobody you know there were people saying I want to fight them but they were behind me and after fighting for the title I don’t want to fight that far back you know um Strickland is behind me but he’s still up there uh everybody knows who he is everybody wants to see him fight so um his he was the best option um and that’s the fight that I want anyway you know I like the way the things he brings to the Octagon so that’s the challenge that I wanted to bring up to myself um the fact that he got pushed back happens you know again more time for me to prepare to whoop whoop some ass Saturday thank you hey man thank you for taking the time is it if there aren’t such thing as uh benefits does it feel a little bit looser like lighter to not have the embedded cameras the big media thing for pay-per-view T-Mobile is it cool to kind of downshift a little bit Jared um yes some days I can do without the media the questions the cameras the microphones and all that stuff some days I can I can deal with it uh if I get asked a whole bunch of repetitive questions it gets it gets real Annoying I don’t like I hate getting to ask the same questions over and over and over again so um yeah so that’s essentially every freaking fight week you know everybody’s asking me about the title fight and Alex pajeda and naturally Sean Strickland but some days are better than others but um I guess I’m getting more accustomed to it um it’s an ebb inflow some days I’m with it some days not so much thank you sir and last for me um about getting a cousin to it give me a gym and anything for anybody who’s been to the Mountaintop came up short what would you say to them that fought for a title main event and are just beating themselves up right now and you could just reach out and be like look man this this might help a little bit Yeah if you’re beating yourself up then you’re not necessarily focusing on learning from this from from whatever took place right so um all my losses they suck and uh Sometimes I Cry Sometimes I’m mad frustrated but not for long I try my very best not to stay in those states of mind for very long Because unless I’m getting a solution out of it it is not going to serve me it’s not going to benefit me any so it’s all about again after these fights is a perfect opportunity to learn from what did I do what did I do what could I have done what should I have done who you know I should have could have would as you can come up with um and just reflecting it’s a time for a reflection not a time for self-deprivation or or or anything like that because none of that is going to elevate you to the status that you want to be at if it’s Champion saying oh you I suck I can’t believe I didn’t do it I you know like that that doesn’t move me closer to a title so things like man if I did this oh I should have did that man I should have been doing this we should have thought like this we should have said something any of those even if they are wrong the the process of evaluating yourself that self-evaluation for me is constantly ongoing especially after these bouts especially after training practices oh yeah appreciate it thank you sir and good luck on Saturday thank you hey Jared uh Strickland said earlier that he’s got no game plan for you do you believe that or do you think it’s um do you think it really doesn’t have a strategy I’m sure his coaches have a strategy I don’t know if he has a strategy the coaches you know try to say some to him and hope that hope the best that he does it um but that’s typical right I expect the same Strickland we’ve seen the last couple of fights um have you ever walked into anything whether it’s in a cage or outside of sports where you’ve got no strategy so again have you ever walked into the Octagon or training session where you’ve got no game plan have I yeah can you relate to what he’s saying at all I can relate not that yeah I can definitely relate um most fights you don’t go into most fights you don’t really go into it thinking okay a b and c and d and I’m gonna do this in this order and it’s going to go a c b d then it’s going to go dcab now people do it people can do it but my brain don’t work like that you know that’s too much Logistics that’s too much paperwork you know I’m more into the physical manifestation of things as opposed to the writing it down and jotting it out and and things like that uh the logistics part of it you know I let the brain deal with all the logistics all that uh logging this here and log of that there it just comes out of my being when it’s when the time is ready um but yeah I expect them to come in there and do his natural be his natural self pressure the jab that lead kick the right hand you know uh I don’t I don’t know people telling me they think I expect him to wrestle um I expect people to wrestle me in general once they feel the power or feel the speed and feel that sense of helplessness I expect people to wrestle but um I don’t know if he tries to wrestle it’ll definitely be to his detriment so who knows what he’s going to do this is just something we’ve been asking a lot of the fighters this morning but uh if they uh holidays coming up and as an athlete what’s your number one tip for regular people who want to lose the weight they’ve gained over Christmas uh uh well don’t do Christmas right don’t do Thanksgiving These are times where people tap into gluttony right if you need some motivation gluttony one of the seven deadly sins and we glorified every year multiple times a year so um gluttony is no good for us especially now with the poisons they’ve been put in the food I don’t know if anybody knows this but somebody told me I can’t remember who was telling me but since covid they’ve passed laws where these companies don’t have to put everything to put in these Foods on the labels and we all know that when covet happened a lot of Maine a lot of uh uh ingredients and products weren’t able to be acquired by these companies so what they do they went to sort of let somebody who had some cheap laboratory made ingredient and threw it in there and they don’t have to tell us about it so um now we’re hearing about all kinds of uh people coming up with uh uh what’s the word ah a rise in sicknesses and disease it could be due to other things I’m not going to mention it here on the microphone but um you know diet is important you know and the foods that we are taught to eat especially here in America are aren’t really that good for us so we live in an age of like people looking for hacks are there any hacks to lose weight hex yeah do it you know do it there is no hacks to life there is no okay what’s the cheat code for life I’m like you either got it or you don’t you’re either in the right place or you’re not it’s just all those energies combining to create that moment for you you have control over it I won’t tell you we all have 100 control over it but we have some control over it like I get up and I go to the gym and I eat good and I think good therefore I feel good when I get in the Octagon I want to I plan on performing good um that amongst other things so um there are no easy I mean there may be some easy hacks that but that’s subjective right that’s what you might find easy I might not find easy I don’t like doing paperwork but there’s some people in here who loves typing and making letters and organizing sharing I hate that I hate even just spending my brain energy on okay bullet point number one no that’s not what I like doing I’d rather okay what do we do how do we do it or let me go do it all right let me do it over and over and let me increase my proficiency that way not through writing it out and doing all that boring stuff awesome thank you guys