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Israel Adesanya put his bitter rivalry with Paulo Costa behind with a second-round knockout of the previously undefeated Brazilian. The Champion improves his record to a clean 20-0, while Costa will need to regroup from his ending 13-win streak.
The fight was a tense affair. ‘Izzy’ began to dominate early on by punching Costa with leg kicks. It slowed down Costa’s attack as he couldn’t find any entry point in his strike. The leg damage accumulated until the second round where Izzy continued the punishment. Costa tried to return to the fight, but the speed and power of Adesanya stopped him in the second round.
The undisputed king!@Style he’s untouchable at middleweight 🏆
[ #UFC253 | #InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi ] pic.twitter.com/vyhCK9i1ei– UFC (@ufc) September 27, 2020
Izzy called Jared Cannonier after the win. The fight hinges on him beating former champion Robert Whittaker, but Adesanya has shown that he accepts the fights he asks for. This fight had a lot of excitement and anticipation and it lived up to the challenge. Adesanya’s star shines much brighter after this victory.
Is Israel Adesanya moving towards bigger things?
Will this be the time for Izzy’s rumored switch to light heavyweight? He has been showing that his size and power consistently mislead his opponents as he keeps getting KO wins. Of the current top contenders in the division, Adesanya has beaten everyone except Jack Hermansson, Darren Till and Jared Cannonier.
Izzy may not want to face Jan Blachowicz, but could she lure Jon Jones over to stay in the division for one more fight? He has long fantasized about the showdown, and the pair even got into a media fight with each other. That jump still seems a bit unlikely, though, especially since Jones appears to be chasing a title in the heavyweight division.
Adesanya is looking to defend his title against Cannonier, but what if Cannonier loses? Would he revenge Whittaker? Would you wait to see what happens to Jack Hermansson, or maybe even wait to see if ‘The Gorilla’ rises through the ranks? The opportunities for the middleweight champion seem endless. Hopefully we’ll see him back in the cage sooner rather than later.
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