Style, strikes, and stardom: honouring Adesanya on his special day
There aren’t many MMA fighters that connected different generations like Israel Adesanya did. He came in flashy just like an anime character would, and made his character stand out from the moment he was signed by UFC. It takes something special in terms of MMA proficiency to be nicknamed The Last Stylebender.
In a few days, Israel is going to be 36 and there’s no doubt in our minds that his illustrious career is coming to an end. Yet, we’re not going to be sad, as with his looming birthday celebrations, we’re going to celebrate his career, and hope that he can bring some of his old glory at least a few more times to the octagon. Adesanya was born on 22nd July, 1989, in Lagos, Nigeria, and moved to New Zealand when he was ten years old.
During his early days, Israel was obsessed with anime such as Death Note and Naruto. Anime shaped his mind, while his desire to pursue martial arts came as a form of hope to defend himself after being bullied during school days. Further influences he attributes to Prince Naseem Hamed who was his inspiration in how sportsmanship can be depicted in the ring. After watching Ong-Bak Adesanya fell in love with Muay Thai which led him to become an adept kickboxer. Before he turned 21 and gone professional, Adesanya held an 31-1 record in amateur boxing, showing signs of greatness from the early days
Being one of a kind fighter was what allowed him to pursue his dreams, and reach stardom that eventually led him to gaining a Stake Partnership and being an ambassador for the online crypto casino and sportsbook brand, a one of a kind deal for a mixed martial artist with Puma, and becoming a Call of Duty promoter. What awaited him down the road was truly amazing to experience and be a part of during Adesanya’s rise to prominence, but let us get back to where it all started.
The UFC Fairytale
Of course, Israel Adesanya was a proficient fighter long before he entered the world of UFC. Yet, the biggest fighting promotion in the world has made him the name he is today. With more than 100 bouts to his name in the entirety of his fighting career, we could write ten articles about his beginnings. Instead, we are going to jump straight to his rise to stardom. When it was announced that Adesanya signed with UFC in 2017 the expectations were great, yet no one could have predicted how he is going to adapt to the big stage. His first victim was Rob Wilkinson who lost by a TKO, which earned Adesanya Performance of the Night award. What followed was a split decision win vs. Marvin Vettori which was Israel’s second fight in the span of two months.
He was incredible in his first UFC year fighting four times during 2018, which is a record in its own right, winning all four bouts after adding Brad Tavares, and Derek Brunson to his collection of wins. The first four wins came from February 11th to November 3rd. After kick starting his career, it was evident that Adesanya is meant for something bigger, and the big opportunity came when he faced Anderson Silva on 10th of February. Adesanya vs. Silva was the main event at UFC 234. It was a fight against a former champ, who was out of his prime, but yet a well respected fighter. After winning the bout via unanimous decision, it was clear that The Last Stylebender deserves a title shoot in the middleweight division.
The fight for the interim UFC Middleweight Championship came on April 13th, at UFC 236 against Kelvin Gastelum in an event that was much similar to the upcoming UFC 318 event. Adesanya won via unanimous decision in a match that was one of the best for the year. The title unification was done when Adesanya knocked out Robert Whittaker on 6th October of 2019. Now the double champ was slotted in consecutive high profile matches which he won one after another.
While a disappointing outing, UFC 248 marked another great win for Adesanya as he won against Yoel Romero via anonymous decision in one of the worst fights of his career. What followed was an eventful duel with Paulo Costa which put Adesanya into the headlines for reasons not tied to sport, sprouting stories about use of illegal substances, and unsportsmanlike behaviour toward his rival. It was at this point that Adesanya realized that he might have done everything he could in the middleweight division and decided to move up a step.
The light heavyweight division proved to be a misstep in the career for The Last Stylebender, as he outright lost his first bout against Jan Blachowicz. Via an unanimous decision. For Adesanya it was the first defeat in his UFC career, but not a disheartening one. He came back to his division where he was once the reigning champion and heavily favoured by Stake.com and other betting outlets in a rematch against Martin Vettori , a bout he won via unanimous decision. The next in line was a rematch against Robert Whittaker, which was yet another win for Adesanya who has shown the world that he is the king of the middleweight division. He once again proved his worth when he took down Jared Cannonier in yet another win by unanimous decision.
The biggest match of Adesanya’s career came at UFC 281 where he was slotted to fight Alex Pereira who took the best out of him on two occasions during their days in kickboxing. The outcome was the same in the UFC as Pereira won via TKO in the fifth round, giving Israel his first defeat in the middleweight division. Their next bout would be one for the ages as UFC 287 was a fight for the UFC Middleweight Championship and was won by Israel via KO in the second round, earning Performance of the Night award for Adesanya.
While everyone thought that The Last Stylebender is once again at the top of the world and that no one can take him down, Sean Strickland had a different idea, and won their bout for the title via unanimous decision stripping Israel Adesanya of his title. The next bout was a clear sign that the once fearless ruler of the division is being caught by the age as he lost once again, this time around vs. Dricus du Plessis.
While the career of Israel Adesanya is not yet officially over, his days of fighting for the belt might be over. After a span of five years, in which he had title on the line each time he stepped into the octagon, he had a non title bout this year in February against Nassourdine Imavov. After a loss via TKO in the third round, the stories of Israel’s retirement started to pop out, but we are sure he had different ideas on the eve of his birthday.
While being busy with his ventures outside of MMA, such as a unique and incoming Israel Adesanya’s Stake Promotion, we are sure he is working on his return to the octagon. At the end of the day he looked fresh during his matchup with Imavov, despite being caught. His body language, and the form in which came in February to fight gives us hope that he could fight again before the year ends. If that move is in the cards for him, here are the potential fighters he could face.
Who Will Israel Adesanya Fight Next?
As we said, a once illustrious career is coming to an end. Yet, considering that Israel is only turning 36 in a few days, we believe that he still has plenty of fuel in the tank. Whether that translates to five, or two fights, we can’t tell. What we’re sure of is that Israel is going to try and get himself into title contention once again. Seeing him lose against Imavov was not pleasant, and we believe that’s not how the former champ is going to end his UFC reign. Yet, going back to the top is not a one way alley. It is not easy to pick Israel’s next fight, but we think that these are the most logical choices.
Anthony Hernandez
Hernandez is a rising star in the UFC, and while Adesanya has no plans to be fed to upcoming youngsters, he must not shy from a challenge at this point in his career. Anthony is an adept wrestler, and he’s been showing his prowess in every match he has started. He is currently an owner of an impressive 14-2-0 record. Eight of those wins have come via submission, which could be tricky for Adesanya. A fighter nicknamed Fluffy is much more dangerous than the name would suggest. He is an elite talent, and if Adesanya wants to get back into title contention he ought to win a fight like this one.
Caio Borralho
Right now, if you want to get an express ticket to a title fight, you need to walk through Caio Borralho. He is the best that the middleweight division has to offer, and The Natural, as he is called, has the face of a killer. 17-1-0 is his record and he can take down opponents via KO and via submission equally. To build a new star, UFC could put Israel in this bout, but we are not sure whether Adesanya would be up for it. The Last Stylebender never ran away from a challenge, but Caio would be a tough nut to crack at the moment. The Natural is on the rise, and we are sure he would be open to face the legendary Adesanya despite his current form and age.
Jan Blachowicz
While we see Adesanya fighting in his natural division at 185, it could be possible that he is more in the mood for a bit of bulking. At the end of the day, Alex Pereira has moved to light heavyweight, and Adesanya might be in the mood to parry him in a different division. Before a trilogy with Alex Pereira could be concluded, Israel would have to fight Jan first. When the two men fought the last time, Blachowicz handed Adesanya his first UFC defeat. While there is no official rivalry between the two, we could see them facing off once again. After all, Jan is a former light heavyweight champion and beating him would be a nice stepping stone for Israel and his aspirations in that division.
Where Style Met Popularity
Israel Adesanya was unique in more than a few ways. Long after he bids farewell to UFC, his name will be mentioned with utmost respect. In a way he was not just an MMA fighter, or an athlete, he was a pop icon. His popularity transcended the sport. For one, the younger audience adored him for his not so subtle anime references. People passionate about the sport had no chance of remaining indifferent to his fighting style.
The unique combination of kickboxing, Muay Thai, and boxing made him an unpredictable marauder. The showmanship shown in the octagon was unprecedented at the moment of his rise. Becoming an undisputed champion in less than two years in the UFC was a feat admired to this day. Pair that with insurmountable charisma, and you get a champion for the ages. The dance moves he displayed in the octagon and confident demeanor were just icing on the cake of his career.
Everything combined gave us a champion that we can only hope to see a few more times fighting before he calls it a day. While the current UFC has big draw fighters such as Ilia Topuria or Tom Aspinall, neither comes close to the cultural influence Adesanya managed to display both in the octagon and outside of it. Truly a generational fighter that brought a lot of young people to the sport, while staying true to what old heads love to see in a fighter who had one of the most dominant runs in the history of the UFC.
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