UFC Vegas 34 Recap: Jared Cannonier beats Kelvin Gastelum in event headliner

Jared Cannonier beats Kelvin Gastelum by unanimous decision in their middleweight bout Saturday night in the main event of UFC Vegas 34 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jared Cannonier beats Kelvin Gastelum by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 34

Though unanimous, the fight was hard-fought and close. Cannonier won 48-47 across all three cards to remain a top contender in the division.

“It’s always glorious to go five rounds with a guy like Kelvin at that level. So winning is even more glorious,” Cannonier said afterward. “I’m happy.”

Cannonier landed more strikes and significant strikes, though Gastelum earned two minutes and 31 seconds of ground control. Cannonier also had a knockdown in round three on a right hook in the first minute.

In the co-main event, Mark O. Madsen won a split-decision over Clay Guida in their three-round lightweight fight. The cards went Madsen’s way, 29-28, 28-29, 30-27.

Other main card winners included Parker Porter, UFC newcomer Saidyokub Kakhramonov, Vinc Pichel, and Alexandre Pantoja. Third-ranked Pantoja scored a second-round submission over sixth-ranked Brandon Royval and likely pushed himself to the front of the line for a title opportunity against flyweight champion Brandon Moreno next.

–Field Level Media