Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
The UFC Fight Night 160: “Hermansson vs. Cannonier” mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+ blew the roof off Royal Arena last Saturday night (Sept. 28, 2019) in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Plenty of fighters were left licking their wounds, including Gunnar Nelson, who was outclassed by Gilbert Burns, despite “Durinho” taking the fight on less than two weeks notice (recap). And Khalil Rountree, who was knocked out by Ion Cutelaba in their Light Heavyweight affair (highlights).
But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover, now a few days removed from the show?
Jack Hermansson.
Coming into the fight, “The Joker” was perhaps the hottest fighter in the Middleweight division, winning four in a row including back-to-back victories over top contenders Ronaldo Souza and David Branch. Collecting win number five against Jared Cannonier — another streaking 185-pounder — would’ve put him close to a shot at the title.
Unfortunately for Hermansson, his previous win streak didn’t include someone with the power that Cannonier possesses, as the hard-hitting slugger — who once competed at Heavyweight — proved that dropping some pounds didn’t mean dropping his power.
Early in the second stanza, “Killa Gorilla” clipped Hermansson with a sneaky short uppercut that dropped him to the floor. What ensued was a vicious display of ground-and-pound that forced the referee on duty to put an end to the fight.
The loss is a crucial one for Hermansson, who will now have to climb his way back up the division ladder, as he will likely drop a few places in the rankings, losing his No. 5 spot and delaying his shot at the 185-pound title.
The defeat, however, will only serve s a lesson for “The Joker.”
”Hi guys, I just came back from the arena and as you know it did not go my way tonight,” Hermansson said post-fight. “And I just want to say that I’m terribly sorry that I couldn’t perform for you guys tonight. And thank you to everyone that has been supporting me, before, during, and after my fights. I really appreciate your love. And I promise you guys that I will get back into the gym, learn from this, grow, develop, and come back as a better fighter and give you guys a better performance next time.”
The bright side for Hermansson is that the division isn’t as stacked as it once was, as former champions Luke Rockhold and Chris Weidman left the weight class to fight at 205 pounds.
If “The Joker” can rack up a couple of nice wins, he could get back into the mix pretty quickly. And as we’ve recently seen from Hermansson, he is very capable of doing just that, as his four previous wins came in the span of just 11 months.
As for what should be next for Jack, I’d like to see him face Uriah Hall.
“Primetime” is coming off two straight wins, most recently taking out Antonio Carlos Junior just two weeks ago. Hall needs a big win to get him into the top 10, while Hermansson needs to do likewise to get back into the mix and prevent his stock from sliding. And when you look at the rest of the field, nothing else makes sense for Hermansson after his Copenhagen defeat.
For complete UFC Copenhagen results and coverage click here.