Israel Adesanya

2022 - 2 - 11

UFC 271 - Israel Adesanya is the No. 2 middleweight in UFC history ... (ESPN)

After his second win over Robert Whittaker, Israel Adesanya looks up at Anderson Silva as he continues to build his legacy.

But on Saturday night the champ showed again that he has the ingredients necessary to fuel his ride down that road. Adesanya was more steadfast on Saturday than he was on the night of his first meeting with Whittaker. That time, he put on a flashier show -- even before the knockout that earned him the belt. If Adesanya instead chooses to remain at 185 for the long haul, he's going to need dance partners to continue to enhance his résumé there. His grand entrance to the Octagon, and becoming champ in just his second trip inside that cage. The champ never allowed the fight to stray from his comfort zone, because he kept himself comfortable everywhere the fight went. Adesanya, the Nigeria-born New Zealander's tight but unanimous decision victory over Whittaker in the main event of UFC 271 on Saturday night in Houston was his fourth defense of the title.

Israel Adesanya isn't Anderson Silva but he's the closest thing to him ... (Sporting News)

The only hiccup in Adesanya's MMA career was when he dared to be great but fell short in capturing the light heavyweight championship last March. Adesanya has ...

But he still has work to do in order to surpass Silva. And that's fine because there was a time we thought nobody would be able to catch "The Spider." After all, few will consider Patrick Cote, Thales Leites and Yushin Okami in the same league as Robert Whittaker, Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa. Not only did Adesanya beat them, he did so when each was in the midst of an impressive winning streak. Some will say that it is premature to place Adesanya among the greatest UFC fighters of all time, but the numbers don’t lie. By 2023, it’s certain that some new blood will emerge in the division for Adesanya. He’ll only be 33 and with his style being one of avoiding contact and making opponents pay for their mistakes, “The Last Stylebender” will prevent damage from piling up as he exits his prime years. What we are witnessing is one of the greatest runs in a single weight class in the history of the UFC... or any MMA promotion. It looks like Sean Strickland is another potential opponent and it’s conceivable that Adesanya can get to eight wins in championship fights before 2022 is over.

Pros react to Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker II (The Mac Life)

Israel Adesanya is still the UFC middleweight champion. The man known as Stylebender went all five rounds with Robert Whittaker tonight in Houston, Texas, ...

— Marvin Vettori (@MarvinVettori)February 13, 2022 As usual, plenty of fighters were at home watching and had some input. The man known as Stylebender went all five rounds with Robert Whittaker tonight in Houston, Texas, and earned himself a unanimous decision.

Israel Adesanya wins rematch over Robert Whittaker to retain ... (DAZN News US)

Israel Adesanya took care of business and retains the middleweight championship. Heading into his middleweight title defense against Robert Whittaker, Israel ...

The Brazilian transitioned to the back and locked in the choke. A right hand sent Lewis to the back of the cage. He boxed circles around a bloody Haqparast for 15 minutes to notch the decision victory. Another sharp elbow, and Cannonier tossed him to the canvas. A stiff jab by Whittaker. Hard left by Whittaker. Adesanya with a leg kick. Adesanya misses a head kick, and Whittaker rushes in and secures another takedown. A feint by Whittaker leads to a takedown. Whittaker controls the remainder of the round, and I have him winning and reclaiming the title. When the stanza came to a close, Whittaker was discouraged and had the look of someone who was about to be put out of his misery. Body kick partially lands for Adesanya to begin the fourth. In the fifth and final round, Adesanya stayed aggressive while Whittaker looked to be content on the outside, willing to counter whatever was thrown his way. Whittaker, though started to get into a bit of a rhythm as the fight went on.

UFC 271 results: Israel Adesanya defeats Robert Whittaker in close ... (The Athletic)

Israel Adesanya retained his middleweight belt by defeating former champion Robert Whittaker via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) at UFC 271 on ...

Me."— Greg Rosenstein (@grosenstein) #UFC271 February 13, 2022 He peppered his opponent with shots from the feet all fight in a somewhat lackluster performance that was enough on the scorecards. Moicano landed a left hook followed by a right hook that sent Hernandez against the cage. Cannonier landed hard elbows on Brunson’s before the referee stepped in to end it early. Jared Cannonier: "Dana, I get the (title) shot next. Lewis tripped Tuivasa to the mat with 2 minutes left in Round 1. Tai Tuivasa knocked out Derrick Lewis in the second round. This fight will come down to whether Whittaker can land the takedown. Adesanya very comfortable and very calm out there. I thought we had a new champion." Adesanya, with a height and reach advantage, found success at range throughout the night and continuously attacked Whittaker’s lead leg. "I didn't think it was all that close.

UFC 271 results, highlights: Israel Adesanya outpoints Robert ... (CBSSports.com)

'The Last Stylebender' took care of business on Saturday night in Houston to keep his middleweight crown.

Israel Adesanya (c) vs. Adesanya landed his own leg kicks while feinting and trying to keep Whittaker off-balance. Unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Adesanya (29-28) Robert Whittaker -- Round 2: Whittaker missed with a high kick early in the round. Robert Whittaker -- Round 3: A cautious start to the round from both men before Adesanya landed a heavy kick to the body. - Israel Adesanya (c) def. Unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Adesanya (39-37) Whittaker kept him pinned to the cage, grinding away and trying to grapple before Adesanya broke free. Whittaker blocked a high kick and slid out of the way of a leg kick. Whittaker landed a good left hand on the break after failing to get the fight back to the ground. As the fight looked like it would quickly get out of hand for Whittaker and possibly end in a replay of the second-round TKO from the pair's UFC 243 clash, Whittaker managed to regain his confidence in Round 2, landing punches and scoring with a takedown to have his first truly positive moments in his rivalry with the champion. After being dominated by Israel Adesanya in their 2019 meeting, Robert Whittaker entered UFC 271 on Saturday night knowing he had a very difficult puzzle to solve if he wanted to regain the middleweight championship.