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It’s hard to believe given that he’s fighting Robert Whittaker this weekend in a UFC Middleweight title unifier, but Israel Adesanya hasn’t even been in the UFC for two years. ‘The Last Stylebender’, who defeated Kelvin Gastelum for the Interim Middleweight title back in April, has only had 6 fights in the Octagon, making his rise to championship status up there with the fastest in UFC history.
Along the way we’ve seen some incredible moments from the Nigerian-born, New Zealand-based striker, including a win over one of the biggest legends in UFC history and some brutal knockouts, too.
Here is a breakdown of Israel Adesanya’s rise to the UFC Middleweight title.
#1 An unforgettable debut – UFC 221
February 11th, 2018 marked the date of UFC 221 in Perth, Western Australia, and while most of the headlines that night surrounded Yoel Romero’s vicious knockout of Luke Rockhold in the main event, a certain preliminary bout left fans with plenty to talk about too.
After putting together an 11-0 record on the Chinese, New Zealand and Australian circuit, Israel Adesanya was signed by the UFC and matched with Aussie native Rob Wilkinson in his Octagon debut. Fans and observers in the know suggested that Adesanya – a flashy former professional kickboxer – could bring an Anderson Silva-esque style to the promotion, but few could’ve predicted how true that would be.
Wilkinson arguably took the first round, albeit only by constantly clinching with Adesanya and forcing him into the cage. But by the second round, Adesanya looked more comfortable and began to snipe at Wilkinson from all kinds of angles, busting him up with some incredible combinations until ‘The Razor’ finally wilted with just over a minute remaining.
To cap it all off, Adesanya showed some tremendous charisma in his post-fight interview – suggesting he was the new “big dog” who had just marked his territory inside the Octagon. After just one fight, it was clear that the UFC had a potential star on their hands.
#2 Going five rounds – TUF 27 Finale
Israel Adesanya showed some weaknesses in his debut fight with Rob Wilkinson, namely the fact that an opponent could neutralise him somewhat by utilising the clinch. His second opponent, Italy’s Marvin Vettori, almost took full advantage of that and took the Stylebender to a split decision that some fans felt Vettori deserved to win. Adesanya was given the nod, but for many observers, the bloom was off his rose.
That wasn’t the case for the UFC, though, as they booked Adesanya in his first main event just three months after the Vettori fight, matching him with longtime veteran Brad Tavares. Hawaii’s Tavares wasn’t known for having exciting fights, but he was on a 4 fight winning streak and with his powerful grappling style, seemed like a tough match for Adesanya on paper.
After a tricky first-round though, ‘The Last Stylebender’ turned up the heat on Tavares and left no question as to who the better fighter was. Tavares hung tough and was able to last the distance, but Adesanya used his pinpoint striking to batter the Hawaiian from pillar to post across five rounds, never allowing Tavares to hit him cleanly due to his expert control of range.
Tavares had been beaten before – Robert Whittaker had knocked him out in 2015 in fact – but nobody had outclassed the Hawaiian quite like this since his fight with Yoel Romero. After this one there could be no doubt – Adesanya was for real.
#3 Taking apart Brunson – UFC 230
Despite picking Brad Tavares apart in July 2018, some eyebrows were raised when Israel Adesanya was matched with Derek Brunson at UFC 230 in just his fourth Octagon appearance. Tavares had sounded like a tough opponent but realistically, the Hawaiian was more of a gatekeeper; a tough veteran but not a title contender, and also a man hardly renowned for his finishing ability.
Brunson, on the other hand, was a different animal entirely. Sure, he’d been knocked out by ‘Jacare’ Souza in his previous fight, but he was still a title contender firmly entrenched in the top ten at 185 lbs, and more to the point, six of his nine UFC victories had come by knockout.
Brunson was a dangerous, heavy-handed finisher and for a man with just 3 UFC appearances to his name, he sounded like a very dangerous opponent.
Indeed, the fight ended in a vicious knockout – but not on the behalf of Brunson. Instead, Adesanya stunned everyone by taking the veteran out in just under a round, in a performance reminiscent of Anderson Silva’s legendary UFC debut knockout of Chris Leben over a decade prior.
Essentially, everything Adesanya threw appeared to land cleanly on Brunson, who seemed panicked from the moment ‘The Last Stylebender’ stuffed an early takedown attempt. He just couldn’t get into range, while Adesanya sniped at him from distance with surgical precision. Brunson was put down twice in the fight, and ate knees, head kicks and punches before the referee mercifully stopped things.
This was a jaw-dropping performance that raised Adesanya straight from the realm of prospect to bonafide title contender – and all in just his 4th UFC fight, too.
#4 Defeating a legend – UFC 234
After dissecting Derek Brunson at UFC 230, Israel Adesanya expected a big fight for his next Octagon appearance and the UFC obliged, matching him with legendary former Middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
Sure, Silva was clearly past his prime – a contentious decision over Brunson was his only official victory since 2012 – but his name value remained high and this was Adesanya’s chance to see his stock rise dramatically.
The two men weren’t expected to main event UFC 234 – which took place in Melbourne, Victoria – but ended up in the slot after Middleweight champ Robert Whittaker was sidelined with an injury. And while the fight didn’t go quite as easily as many fans figured it would for Adesanya, it was still fascinating to watch.
The two strikers went toe-to-toe for fifteen minutes, dancing around the Octagon and creating a fight that looked more like it belonged in a movie than in the UFC – but only in a good way. And while Adesanya arguably gave Silva a little too much respect, it was clear by the end of the fight that the Stylebender had landed the better strikes throughout the fight and definitely deserved the nod from the judges.
Silva had been beaten before of course, but this win felt important for Adesanya in a different way; essentially, it was the passing of the torch at Middleweight, from the original flashy, surgical striker to the man bringing that style into the next generation. Adesanya already had a better win – but this one made him into a superstar.
#5 Capturing the gold – UFC 236
When it was confirmed that following the injury that removed him from UFC 234, Middleweight champ Robert Whittaker would be out of action for an extended period of time, it made perfect sense for the UFC to introduce one of their patented Interim titles – matching Israel Adesanya, now the top contender, against the man who was supposed to face Whittaker – the red-hot Kelvin Gastelum – to decide the new titleholder.
The fight was set for UFC 236 in April, and like with many of his past fights, Adesanya came in as an underdog in the eyes of many fans. Gastelum had only been beaten once since moving to 185 lbs in 2016, and he’d beaten the likes of Jacare Souza, Michael Bisping and Vitor Belfort along the way.
The winner of 2013’s TUF 17 tournament, Gastelum had bricks for hands and arguably the best grappling game Adesanya had faced in his UFC tenure.
If everyone was expecting Adesanya to be given his toughest fight to date, they weren’t proven otherwise. Gastelum came out looking to strike, and after Adesanya had some success from the outside, Gastelum became the first man to really hit him cleanly – knocking him down with a left hand.
Adesanya was able to recover, but the shot set the tone for the fight; Adesanya was able to snipe at Gastelum from the outside, hurting him on numerous occasions, but when Gastelum was able to wade forward, he was clearly capable of catching the Stylebender cleanly and hurting him too.
By the time the fourth round ended, not only was it clear that the fifth round would decide the victor – but it was also clear that we were witnessing one of the all-time great UFC title fights.
And in that fifth round, Adesanya treated everyone to something special; he proved that he had everything it takes to be a genuine UFC champion. Gastelum had shown he was easily the toughest opponent the Stylebender had ever faced – but in that fifth round, Adesanya simply took him apart with an amazing striking display, and by the end it was anyone’s guess as to what was keeping Gastelum vertical as Adesanya hit him with combination after combination, finally dropping him in the waning seconds.
Gastelum was able to survive, but despite putting on a tremendous performance himself, after the final round it was clear who the fight belonged to. Adesanya was given the nod by all three judges, who also saw fit to give him a 10-8 fifth round – a ridiculous accomplishment given the back-and-forth action in the previous four – making him the UFC’s interim Middleweight champion.
Will Adesanya’s journey to the top see him reach the pinnacle against Whittaker this weekend? Only time will tell – but judging on his previous fights, he’s already well on his way to becoming an all-time great in the Octagon.
