The 32-year-old Strickland, who made a stir with controversial feedback earlier than the struggle, wins unanimous five-round choice.
American Sean Strickland has surprised Nigerian-born New Zealander Israel Adesanya to take the middleweight title by unanimous choice in the principle occasion of UFC 293, the primary UFC occasion in Australia’s largest metropolis in six years.
The 32-year-old Strickland (28-5), who precipitated a stir within the lead-up to the struggle with sexist and misogynistic feedback at a press convention selling the bout, gained a five-round choice with all three judges scoring it 49-46.
“Am I dreaming? Am I going to get up? Somebody hit me … I don’t cry a lot however I’m making an attempt to maintain it collectively proper now,” an emotional Strickland stated instantly after the bout. “I surrender so many mind cells to the MMA gods … I believed I’d be strolling away a little bit bloody, a little bit damaged up. I’m a little bit shocked that didn’t occur.”
Backed by sturdy vocal assist at Qudos Financial institution Area, Adesanya (24-3) was a transparent favorite to subdue his controversial American opponent and retain the title he gained from Alex Pereira at UFC 281 in April.
However the 32-year-old Strickland’s counterattacking type was brutally efficient with the American touchdown the extra telling pictures all through the struggle with Adesanya struggling to discover a strategy to harm Strickland.
After a affected person begin by each fighters which noticed Adesanya probing Strickland’s uncommon type, it was the American that discovered the primary telling strike with a clear straight shot that felled Adesanya. Strickland rapidly moved in on the 34-year-old New Zealander’s again with a flurry of strikes to shut out the primary spherical within the American’s favor.
Adesanya was the extra assertive within the second and third rounds, discovering his vary together with his kicks and right-hand pictures however continued to go away himself open for Strickland to strike at his physique and head.
The ultimate rounds noticed Adesanya transfer extra into his shell because the New Zealander struggled to make any imprint on the American’s defence. Strickland sensed the chance to go after the champion and a flurry of punches and kicks within the last minute helped guarantee the choice and the middleweight title.
“You don’t struggle that man with that many highlight-reel knockouts,” Strickland stated about Adesanya. “Nearly all of my associates, he’s beat fairly simply. I used to be even sort of doubting myself at instances.”
“However I’ve acquired to say, the followers in Australia, you guys motivated me. Once I’m strolling in right here and I heard you guys yelling. In that fourth spherical I heard you guys yelling. It fuelled me.”
The UFC struggle made information within the New South Wales state legislature, the place the main authorities politician was pressured to defend his state’s cost of about $10m to assist make sure the UFC occasion got here to Sydney, for the primary time since 2017, after Strickland made sexist and misogynistic feedback about placing girls again within the kitchen.
Strickland had agreed to struggle on late discover after Adesanya’s South African rival Dricus du Plessis was unavailable resulting from damage. The Fifth-ranked American earned his title shot after wins over Abus Magomedov and Nassourdine Imavov.
Within the co-main occasion, Alexander Volkov (37-10) gained his heavyweight bout by submission within the second spherical towards 30-year-old Sydney-born Tai Tuivasa.
The 34-year-old Russian dominated the struggle regardless of an damage to his entrance leg which Tuivasa had focused earlier within the spherical, with a lopsided strike rely as he landed hit after hit on the Australian earlier than trapping him in a choke maintain which pressured Tuivasa to faucet out.
“(He took) so many punches and he was nonetheless on his legs, this man could be very powerful,” stated 34-year-old Volkov, who gained by submission for the primary time since 2016.
Australian Tyson Pedro opened the principle card knocking out Sweden’s Anton Turkalj within the first spherical, earlier than New Zealander Justin Tafa did the identical to American Austen Lane in a heavyweight bout and Manel Kape beat Felipe dos Santos by a five-round unanimous choice in an entertaining flyweight match.
