UFC Fight Night 160: Hermansson vs. Cannonier | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy
- Roe Jogan
- May 21
- 7 min read
Table of Contents
Introduction
UFC Fight Night 160: Hermansson vs. Cannonier took place on Saturday, September 28, 2019 at Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark — broadcast live on ESPN+ as ESPN+ 18. The card drew 12,767 fans for a gate of $1,600,000. It was the first UFC event in Denmark and the promotion’s 25th country. The main event was a middleweight bout between Jack Hermansson and Jared Cannonier.
Cannonier stopped Hermansson by TKO at 0:27 of round two, earning Performance of the Night. Ovince Saint Preux, John Phillips, and Jack Shore each earned Performance of the Night. No Fight of the Night was awarded. Mark Madsen, a Danish Olympic silver medalist, won his lightweight bout by TKO in the first round before his home country crowd in the opening fight of the main card. Gilbert Burns defeated Gunnar Nelson by unanimous decision.
First UFC in Denmark — 25th Country
Royal Arena is Copenhagen’s premier indoor events facility, holding approximately 16,000. The 12,767 attendance and $1,600,000 gate were strong results for a first UFC visit to a Scandinavian capital city without Denmark’s primary individual fighter — Hermansson is Swedish, not Danish. The card’s most locally resonant result was the co-main event: Mark Madsen, a 32-year-old Copenhagen wrestler who had won a silver medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Greco-Roman wrestling at 80kg, made his UFC debut against Danilo Belluardo in front of his home country crowd in the opening main card fight.
Hermansson had been the commercially anticipated main event star: his surprise UFC debut from obscurity, his four-fight UFC win streak including the major upset of Ronaldo Souza at FN150 in Florida, and his position as the middleweight title eliminator winner made him Denmark’s most commercially prominent individual UFC competitor despite his Swedish nationality. Cannonier had won his previous two fights — over Anderson Silva at UFC 237 and David Branch before that — producing an unlikely MW contender narrative after his HW and LHW career phases.
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Saturday, September 28, 2019 (FIRST UFC IN DENMARK — 25th country; ESPN+ 18)
📍 Venue: Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark
👥 Attendance: 12,767
💰 Gate: $1,600,000
📺 Broadcast: ESPN+ 18 (ESPN+ streaming; ESPN2 prelims)
🏆 Main Event: Jack Hermansson vs. Jared Cannonier — MW Title Eliminator (Hermansson on 4-fight win streak; Cannonier coming off Anderson Silva win at UFC 237)
✅ Result: Cannonier def. Hermansson via TKO (punches) — R2, 0:27 (PoN $50k; short right uppercut dropped Hermansson; GnP finish; Hermansson 4-fight streak ENDED; Cannonier = new #1 MW contender)
Main Event: Cannonier’s 27-Second TKO of Hermansson
Hermansson’s four-fight win streak had been built on physical pressure, ground control, and his unexpected grappling quality against Ronaldo Souza at FN150. He had not been stopped in his previous 24 professional fights entering Copenhagen. Cannonier’s boxing-based striking — developed during his transition from heavyweight to light heavyweight to middleweight — was his primary competitive weapon. His right hand power had produced KOs of David Branch and the TKO of Anderson Silva.
The short right uppercut that dropped Hermansson at 12 seconds of round two was the fight’s decisive moment: Hermansson stumbled backward into the cage fence and fell to the mat. Cannonier’s ground-and-pound was controlled and sustained — Hermansson’s attempts to defend from his back produced the referee’s intervention at 0:27. The result placed Cannonier as the primary UFC MW title contender, in position for the Israel Adesanya championship fight at UFC 253.
OSP’s Von Flue, Phillips’ 14-Second KO, Shore’s Debut & The Card
Ovince Saint Preux’s Von Flue choke of Michal Oleksiejczuk at 2:14 of round two was his fourth career UFC Von Flue choke — the most in UFC history by any individual fighter. The Von Flue choke is applied from a sprawl position when the opponent attempts a single-leg takedown: the attacker hooks over the opponent’s arm and under the chin, applying a cranking neck crank/blood choke. OSP had applied it against Quentin Jackson (2014), Allen Crowder (2019), and now Oleksiejczuk. Three Von Flue finishes in a career — and now four — is a statistical anomaly given the technique’s individual rarity.
John Phillips’ 14-second KO of Alen Amedovski was the Copenhagen card’s fastest individual finish and one of the fastest KOs in UFC MW history. Jack Shore’s debut win at BW earned the fourth Performance of the Night alongside Cannonier, OSP, and Phillips — a Welsh BW from Cwmaman completing his UFC debut in Denmark before a full arena. Mark Madsen’s opening main card TKO of Belluardo at 1:12 of round one — which did not earn a bonus despite its finish quality — produced the Copenhagen crowd’s most emotionally resonant individual reaction: the 2016 Olympic silver medalist winning his UFC debut at home.
Full Results
Main Card (ESPN+)
Jared Cannonier def. Jack Hermansson — TKO (punches) — R2, 0:27 — MW (PoN $50k; short uppercut drop + GnP; Hermansson 4-fight streak ENDED; Cannonier = new #1 MW contender for Adesanya title fight!)
Mark Madsen def. Danilo Belluardo — TKO (punches) — R1, 1:12 — LW (DANISH OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALIST 2016 Rio wins UFC debut in HOME COUNTRY! Royal Arena crowd; no bonus but maximum local reaction)
Gilbert Burns def. Gunnar Nelson — Unanimous Decision (29-28x3) — WW (Burns continuing WW career build; future WW title challenger!)
Ion Cutelaba def. Khalil Rountree Jr. — TKO (elbows and punches) — R1, 2:35 — LHW
Ovince Saint Preux def. Michał Oleksiejczuk — Submission (Von Flue choke) — R2, 2:14 — LHW (PoN $50k; OSP’S 4TH CAREER VON FLUE CHOKE — MOST IN UFC HISTORY! Sprawl + hook over arm + chin crank)
Nicolas Dalby def. Alex Oliveira — Unanimous Decision (29-28x3) — WW
Preliminary Card (ESPN2 / ESPN+)
John Phillips def. Alen Amedovski — KO (punches) — R1, 0:14 — MW (PoN $50k; 14-SECOND KO; one of fastest in UFC MW history!)
Makhmud Muradov def. Alessio Di Chirico — Unanimous Decision (29-28x3) — MW
Ismail Naurdiev def. Siyar Bahadurzada — Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-25, 30-25) — WW
Giga Chikadze def. Brandon Davis — Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) — FW (CHIKADZE UFC DEBUT WIN! Future FW top-5 contender!)
Lina Lansberg def. Macy Chiasson — Unanimous Decision (29-27x3) — Women’s BW
Marc Diakiese def. Lando Vannata — Unanimous Decision (30-27x3) — LW
Jack Shore def. Nohelin Hernandez — BW (PoN $50k; SHORE’S UFC DEBUT WIN; Welsh BW from Cwmaman fighting in Copenhagen; continuing professional unbeaten record)
Bonuses & Awards
🥇 Fight of the Night: NOT AWARDED
🥇 Performance of the Night: Cannonier + OSP + Phillips + Shore — $50,000 each (4 PoN; no FotN)
Records & Milestones
• First UFC event in Denmark (25th country).
• OSP’s 4th Von Flue choke — most in UFC history.
• Phillips’ 14-second KO — one of the fastest stoppages in UFC MW divisional history.
• Mark Madsen’s Copenhagen debut — Danish Olympic silver medalist winning UFC debut in home country.
Legacy & Impact
Cannonier’s Copenhagen win produced the UFC MW championship fight against Israel Adesanya at UFC 253 in September 2020 on Yas Island, where Adesanya won by unanimous decision. Hermansson’s Copenhagen loss was a setback that he subsequently addressed with wins over Kelvin Gastelum and Marvin Vettori. Mark Madsen’s Copenhagen debut opened a UFC LW career that produced nine consecutive wins through 2023 before his first loss. Giga Chikadze’s Copenhagen debut win was the first step in a FW career that produced a top-five FW ranking and wins over Edson Barboza, Calvin Kattar, and others.
Gilbert Burns’ Copenhagen decision over Nelson was one of his final LW appearances before the WW move that produced consecutive WW wins and a title fight against Kamaru Usman at UFC 258. Jack Shore’s Copenhagen debut was the start of a BW career that continued unbeaten through multiple fights before an eventual setback.
FAQ
What is the Von Flue choke?
The Von Flue choke is applied from a sprawl position when the opponent shoots a single-leg takedown. The defender hooks over the opponent’s shoulder and under their chin from the top position, applying a blood choke through the rotational pressure of their chest and arm. It requires the opponent to be under the defender’s chest weight with their arm trapped. OSP’s fourth career application of the technique — against Oleksiejczuk when he attempted to stand from a single-leg — was a technical execution demonstration of a highly unusual individual submission speciality.
What was Mark Madsen’s Olympic context?
Madsen was a 32-year-old Copenhagen Greco-Roman wrestler who had competed at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in the 80kg Greco-Roman wrestling division. He won silver, losing the gold medal match to Davor Štefinek of Croatia. His transition to MMA after the Olympics produced an unbeaten regional professional record before his UFC signing. His Copenhagen TKO of Belluardo before 12,767 home country fans was one of the sport’s most emotionally charged individual debut moments of 2019.
What was Cannonier’s career trajectory?
Cannonier was a 35-year-old Anchorage, Alaska fighter who had competed at heavyweight (TKO loss to Stefan Struve in 2015), light heavyweight (UFC 220 loss to Volkan Oezdemir in 2018), and now middleweight after cutting weight. His MW transition had produced wins over David Branch (TKO), Anderson Silva (TKO at UFC 237), and now Hermansson. A UFC title challenger who had competed across three weight classes before finding his competitive level at 185 was an unusual career narrative.
What was OSP’s Von Flue dominance?
OSP was a 36-year-old Port-au-Prince, Haiti LHW who had developed Von Flue choke proficiency across his career that no other fighter had matched. His four individual career Von Flue chokes produced a statistical specialisation in a technique that most UFC fighters have never applied at all. His Copenhagen finish of Oleksiejczuk — who had been on a PoN run with TKO finishes at Prague (FN145) and Saint Petersburg (FN149) — ended Oleksiejczuk’s consecutive-finish streak with a textbook Von Flue application.
Who was Giga Chikadze?
Chikadze was a 28-year-old Tbilisi, Georgia featherweight who had developed a Muay Thai kickboxing background across Georgian and international circuits. His Copenhagen split decision debut win over Brandon Davis demonstrated early kicking and striking technique that his subsequent UFC FW career amplified dramatically. His wins over Jamey Simmons, Irwin Rivera, Edson Barboza, and Calvin Kattar produced a top-five FW ranking by 2021.
What was Phillips’ 14-second KO significance?
Phillips was a 37-year-old Cardiff, Wales middleweight who had gone 17-4-1 professionally before Copenhagen. His 14-second KO of Amedovski — a punch combination that connected at 0:14 of round one — was one of the fastest individual stoppages in MW divisional history. Amedovski had appeared on the FN145 Prague card losing to Jotko; his Copenhagen result was his second consecutive UFC loss. Phillips’ 14-second finish in Denmark made him, along with Shore, one of two Welsh fighters to earn Performance of the Night bonuses on the same UFC card.
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