Jared Cannonier 'can't really make any reasoning' why UFC booked him vs. Michael Page
Former title challenger Cannonier (18-8 MMA, 11-8 UFC) takes on Page (23-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in a middleweight bout Aug. 16 at United Center in Chicago (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Page has only fought once at 185 pounds in the octagon when he handed Shara Magomedov his first-career loss at UFC Fight Night 250. Cannonier on the other hand, has fought the who's who in the division, from Israel Adesanya, to Robert Whittaker, and Sean Strickland.
"The issue is that I have with the fight is that he's not really a middleweight," Cannonier told Submission Radio. "I'm focused on getting back to the title. I understand it's a big fight, it's on a big card. So, there is some weight there."
Ex-UFC fighter Joe Riggs claimed that Cannonier wasn't too excited when offered Page, and how he heard Dana White had Cannonier on the "chopping block." Cannonier addressed Riggs' comments.
"That's the rumor you guys have heard so, I'm going to leave it at that, a rumor that y'all heard," Cannonier said.
Cannonier was asked if the matchup has grown on him over time, and his answer was no.
"It's business as usual," Cannonier said. "It's all about the next fight, to be honest. It's not that. He may be unranked, but I don't know. I can't really make any reasoning behind the matchmaking. It's still an exciting fight. I've watched 'MVP' for a long time. He's a world-renowned fighter, and we all know who he is. We all love to watch him fight. So, it's still a big fight and with any fight, a dominant finish will get me back on track of where I want to go."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
ESPN Analyst Gives Nuggets Excellent Offseason Grade After Multiple Moves
ESPN Analyst Gives Nuggets Excellent Offseason Grade After Multiple Moves originally appeared on Athlon Sports. It has been a busy offseason for the Denver Nuggets as they have made multiple changes to their roster to chase another championship next season. Of course, the Nuggets have been eliminated in the second round of the playoffs over the last two seasons after winning the title behind Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon in 2023. Denver began the offseason by trading Michael Porter Jr. and a 2032 first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson as they added a three-point sharpshooter to their lineup and also freed up cap space. With their extra cap space, the Nuggets signed Tim Hardaway Jr. and reunited with Bruce Brown, who played a key role for them during their championship run in 2023, while also landing Jonas Valanciunas from the Sacramento Kings for Dario Saric. With these moves, ESPN's Kevin Pelton gave the Nuggets an A- offseason grade. 'After the dust cleared, Denver's offseason resulted in the strongest Nuggets team on paper since they won the 2023 title, highlighted by swapping Michael Porter Jr. for Cameron Johnson at the cost of a valuable 2032 unprotected first-rounder,' Pelton wrote. Pelton makes a great point about how the Nuggets' roster looks to be the best they have had since their championship season in 2023. Of course, the Nuggets have struggled with their bench unit over the past few seasons but with the additions of Hardaway Jr., Valanciunas and Brown, they clearly made it a priority to upgrade their depth this summer. While that may be the case, they will likely not be bringing back Russell Westbrook who played a key role for them off the bench last season. Because of this, the Nuggets do lack a true backup point guard, though Brown could fill that role next season. With these moves, the Nuggets will now enter next season as a clear contender in the Western Conference with Jokic leading the way as they try to capitalize on another championship. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Pat McAfee goes off on ‘bum ass suits at ESPN' while praising $1.6 billion WWE deal
Not everyone with the WWE has glowing things to say about ESPN. Former wrestling commentator and current ESPN host Pat McAfee called out some of the mid-level 'suits' as bums after the announcement on Wednesday that WWE and the network are teaming up on a deal to broadcast the promotion's premium live events. 'Congrats to the @WWE and @espn on getting a historic PLE deal done,' McAfee said in a post on X. 4 Pat McAfee figures to see his role only grow in the coming months with this latest move bringing WWE to ESPN. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images 4 John Cena defended his WWE Worlds title against Cody Rhodes at Met Life Stadium on August 3, 2025. George Napolitano / 'Great to see 2 powerhouses of sports and entertainment come together. I assume all the mid-level, powerless, bum ass suits at ESPN will attempt to muddy this somehow (out of context leaks/ignorant anonymous opinions/etc.) but, in the end.. this agreement will outlive the dinosaurs currently guarding desks in Bristol and this deal will be great for ESPN. Cheers to the future.' The deal, which will run for five years and is worth $1.6 billion, will allow ESPN to broadcast WWE events such as WrestleMania, SummerSlam and the Royal Rumble as part of its new direct-to-consumer service that launches later this month. 4 Triple-H and the WWE will be on ESPN programming. WWE via Getty Images 4 Norby Williamson Getty Images McAfee, who stepped back from his WWE commentator duties earlier this year due to his busy schedule, has previously had issues with ESPN executives, with him accusing Norby Williamson of trying to 'sabotage' his eponymous show in 2024. Williamson was the company's executive editor and head of event and studio production. McAfee went hard after Williamson, who left ESPN in January, on multiple occasions, even saying 'I don't got a motherf–king boss' last February. ESPN and McAfee have been business partners since September 2023, when the former NFL punter inked a five-year $85 million deal.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
ESPN, NFL fantasy football to merge: What it means for your league
ESPN announced Tuesday it had agreed to acquire numerous media assets from the NFL in a landmark agreement. Most notably, ESPN acquired NFL Network and the league's ever-popular RedZone channel, which shows every touchdown from every game, as part of the deal. The NFL will acquire a 10% equity stake in ESPN as part of the deal. ESPN has also acquired the NFL's fantasy football product, making NFL Fantasy a part of ESPN Fantasy Football. What will that mean for fantasy football managers? Here's what we know about that element of the merger as the 2025 NFL season approaches. How ESPN, NFL fantasy football merger will impact leagues ESPN announced it was planning to "merge [the NFL's fantasy product] into its existing platform" after acquiring it from the NFL. That means all NFL Fantasy leagues will eventually be a part of the ESPN Fantasy Football app, and ESPN Fantasy Football will be the official game of the NFL. A timetable for the app merger has not yet been finalized. That said, it seems unlikely to happen before the 2025 NFL season, as the agreements between ESPN and the NFL are subject to approval from both government regulators and NFL owners. Such a delay would allow those using the NFL Fantasy App to continue doing so in 2025. ESPN did not immediately respond to USA TODAY Sports' request for more details about the pending merger of the two products. It's worth noting ESPN changed the interface of its fantasy app on Monday, Aug. 4, one day before the agreement with the NFL was announced. ESPN outlined the changes made to the app for the 2025 fantasy football season, "will provide improved roster management options and a more personalized experience tailored to your teams and leagues." It's unclear whether the pending merger was part of the impetus for the changes, nor is it clear whether the upgrades will facilitate ESPN's eventual integration of the NFL Fantasy App's data into its product.
