Jared Cannonier vs. Sean Strickland targeted for UFC Fight Night event on Oct. 15

A middleweight clash pitting Jared Cannonier against Sean Strickland is in the works to headline a UFC Fight Night event on Oct. 15.

The bout, which has not yet been finalized, was first reported by insider Ariel Helwani. The card doesn’t have an official location, but it will likely take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Cannonier is coming off a failed bid for middleweight gold at UFC 276, where he dropped a five-round verdict to Israel Adesanya on July 2. Prior to that, “The Killa Gorilla” had been victorious in five of six promotional appearances, earning wins over the likes of Derek Brunson, Kelvin Gastelum, Jack Hermansson and Anderson Silva.

Strickland had his own bid for title contention shot down at UFC 276, as he suffered a first-round KO defeat to former Glory Kickboxing champ Alex Pereira. That defeat snapped a six-bout winning streak for the 31-year-old Team Quest representative.