American Sean Strickland has defeated Nigerian-born New Zealander Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 293, the first Ultimate Fighting Championship event in Australia’s largest city in six years, via unanimous decision.
Strickland (28-5) won a five-round decision with all three judges scoring it 49-46. He raised a controversy in the lead-up to the fight with sexist and misogynistic statements at a news conference promoting the event.
Adesanya (24-3) was a clear favorite to defeat his controversial American opponent and retain the championship he earned from Alex Pereira at UFC 281 in April, with strong loud support at Qudos Bank Arena.
During the blow, Strickland’s counterattacking approach proved brutally effective, with the American landing the more telling blows throughout the bout while Adesanya struggled to injure Strickland.
After a methodical start in which Adesanya probed Strickland’s unorthodox approach, the American found the first telling stroke with a crisp straight shot that knocked Adesanya out. Strickland landed a series of hits on the 34-year-old New Zealander’s back to end the opening round in the American’s advantage.
In the second and third rounds, Adesanya was more proactive, finding his range with his kicks and right-hand blows, but he still left himself exposed for Strickland to attack at his torso and head.
The closing rounds saw Adesanya retreat deeper into his shell as he failed to make an impression on the American’s defences. Strickland saw an opening to attack the champion, and a flurry of punches and kicks in the closing minute helped seal the decision and the middleweight belt.
Commenting about his blow with Adesanya, Strickland stated:
“You don’t fight that guy with that many highlight-reel knockouts.
“The majority of my friends, he’s beat pretty easily. I was even kind of doubting myself at times.
“But I’ve got to say, the fans in Australia, you guys motivated me. When I’m walking in here and I heard you guys yelling. In that fourth round, I heard you guys yelling. It fuelled me.”
cc: Al Jazeera
