But Cannonier's powerful strikes proved to cause more significant damage as he eked out a split-decision victory in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday. Judges at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas scored it 49-46 Cannonier, 49-46 Strickland and 49-46 Cannonier to give him the win.

"I thought I had it 3-2," Cannonier said in the Octagon following his victory. "I did a little bit more damage. We saw the blood on his face."

Though Cannonier struggled with Strickland's crisp jab, he did have success in sequences that had him fire a leg kick and then lunge forward with a punch upstairs.

"It was definitely one of the answers to his jab, which is one of his biggest weapons," added Cannonier about his leg kicks to offset Strickland's weapon of choice. "One of the answers was working for us."

Cannonier really began to open up with his power punches during the third round, landing hard shots. With the bout tied on DAZN's scorecard entering the fifth round, Cannonier showed more urgency during the final five minutes to get the slight nod.

After the fight, Cannonier, who entered the night as the third-ranked middleweight, said that he'd like to fight anyone ranked above him toward a title shot.

"I would definitely like another title shot — sooner rather than later."

Here's how the entire UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland event went.