5 reasons why Israel Adesanya may never surpass Anderson Silva as the UFC middleweight GOAT

After a comprehensive victory over Marvin Vettori at UFC 263, Israel Adesanya solidified his standing as the undisputed king of the middleweights in the UFC right now.

Adesanya still has challenges in front of him, such as a rematch against former champion Robert Whittaker, but he is clearly on the path to greatness - if he isn't there already. Several fans and experts believe that 'The Last Stylebender' can even surpass Anderson Silva, who is widely regarded as the greatest UFC middleweight of all time.

However, despite a few factors suggesting otherwise, Israel Adesanya may never be able to match the legacy of Anderson Silva in the UFC's middleweight division. Here are five reasons why.

#5 Anderson Silva ushered in an era of UFC and MMA superstars, while Israel Adesanya didn't need to

Israel Adesanya is probably the second-biggest draw in the UFC right now after former two-division champion Conor McGregor. And while 'The Last Stylebender' is certainly one of the biggest stars MMA has ever seen, he is fortunate to be part of the UFC while it has already been boosted by big names like McGregor, Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, Georges St-Pierre and Chuck Liddell.

Anderson Silva, on the other hand, was a trendsetter in many ways - a person who rapidly increased the popularity of the UFC despite joining it very late in his career. Hailing from Brazil, he had a massive global impact as well, inspiring a section of fans and fighters to follow the sport.

Of course, the original legends like Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock had blazed a path for the promotion, but Silva's eye-catching knockouts and entertaining fighting style brought a horde of fans to MMA and the UFC.

GOAT status must also consider impact outside the octagon, and Anderson Silva has the edge in this regard.

#4 Anderson Silva has a wider range and higher number of finishes in the UFC

As mentioned earlier, Anderson Silva's entertaining fighting style made him one of the first-ever bonafide stars in the UFC. His precise, creative striking brought him a plethora of highlight-reel knockouts.

Silva reeled off 11 finishes in the UFC middleweight division, which - needless to say - is a record in the weight class. He also has the most finishes in UFC title fights (9). Israel Adesanya, meanwhile, has only four finishes in 11 UFC fights.

Silva knocked out Rich Franklin with a knee to claim the UFC middleweight title, before meting out the same fate to Vitor Belfort via a famous front kick. With other notable moments such as his comeback submission of Chael Sonnen and his showboating annihilation of Forrest Griffin, 'The Spider' has a wider range of finishes as well.

Anderson Silva ran through his opponents like no other, racking up ridiculous finishes with ease. And while Israel Adesanya hasn't been troubled too often in the octagon, he arguably won't be able to match his predecessor in this aspect.

#3 Anderson Silva was more well-rounded than Israel Adesanya currently is

Anderson Silva is one of the most decorated martial artists the world has ever seen, with distinctions in a wide variety of disciplines. He is a black prajied in Muay Thai, a third-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, a fifth-dan black belt in Taekwondo and a yellow rope in Capoeira.

While Silva's striking brought him most of his wins and plaudits in the UFC, he was able to hold his own on the ground. He had submission wins over accomplished wrestlers like Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen, apart from a fellow BJJ black belt in Travis Lutter.

Israel Adesanya can't boast of the same accomplishments, despite a decorated kickboxing career. His shortcomings in the grappling department have been exposed in the recent past, although it must be said that he's improving rapidly.

As a far more well-rounded MMA fighter, Anderson Silva has a significant advantage over Adesanya.

#2 Anderson Silva's UFC numbers don't lie

Often, when it comes to sporting superstars, records are the biggest reason behind them achieving GOAT status - understandably so. Anderson Silva has almost every record in the book when it comes to the UFC middleweight division.

Silva competed in the most middleweight title fights (13), has the longest title reign in UFC history (2,457 days), has the longest win streak in UFC history (16), has the most knockdowns in UFC history (18) and the most knockouts in UFC title fights (7). He won the Fight of the Night award five times, the Knockout of the Night award seven times and the Submission of the Night award twice.

Israel Adesanya has given a good account of himself in the UFC, but his numbers pale in comparison to Anderson Silva's. And that will probably always be the case.

#1 Israel Adesanya probably can't replicate Anderson Silva's success in the UFC middleweight division

Perhaps the most telling record of Anderson Silva's UFC career was his 10 successful defenses of the middleweight title. A historic title reign like the Brazilian's probably can't be topped, even though Israel Adesanya's time at the top of the 185-lbs division seems set to continue for a while.

The Nigeria-born fighter has three defenses and several notable wins at middleweight, but in an era swayed by the prospect of champ-champ status, he might have an eye on bigger and better things. Adesanya has already moved up to light heavyweight once and has claimed that he will definitely be back at 205 lbs at some point in the future.

Even otherwise, competition in the UFC's middleweight division is fierce. With extraordinary fighters like Robert Whittaker, Paulo Costa and Darren Till, Adesanya will have to be truly perfect to get anywhere close to Silva's title reign. And although he has done well against these very fighters in the past, anything can happen in the world of MMA.

Anderson Silva's iron grip over the UFC middleweight title during his prime may never be replicated, even by a fighter as skilled and decorated as Israel Adesanya.

Edited by Atharva Papnoi