MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main event for UFC 248.
UFC 248 takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
Israel Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC)
Staple info:
Height: 6’4″ Age: 30 Weight: 185 lbs. Reach: 80″
Last fight: Knockout win over Robert Whittaker(Oct. 5, 2019)
Camp: City Kickboxing (New Zealand)
Stance/striking style: Switch-stance/kickboxing
Risk management: Good
Supplemental info:
+ UFC middleweight champion
+ Regional MMA titles
+ Professional kickboxing experience (76-5-2)
+ Professional boxing experience (5-1)
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt
+ 14 KO victories
+ 7 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Consistent pace and pressure
+ Superb feints and footwork
+ Creative striking flow
^ Variates well to the body
+ Dynamic kicking arsenal
+ Improved counter wrestling
^ Underhooks, getups, separations
+ Active and attacking guard game
Yoel Romero (13-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC)
Staple info:
Height: 6’0″ Age: 42 Weight: 185 lbs. Reach: 73.5″
Last fight: Decision loss to Paulo Costa(Aug. 17, 2019)
Camp: American Top Team (Florida)
Stance/striking style: Southpaw/kickboxing
Risk management: Fair
Supplemental info:
+ Olympic silver medalist (wrestling)
+ Multiple wrestling accolades
+ 11 KO victories
+ 4 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Incredibly athletic and agile
^ Closes distance quickly
+ Deceptive tempo changes
+ Variates looks and attack levels
^ Dangerous flying knees off fakes
+ Accurate left cross and right hook
+ Good head movement
+ Superb wrestling ability
^ Defensively and offensively
+ Difficult to control in transit
^ Springs and scrambles to safety
Point of interest: Controlling space and time
The main event for UFC 248 features a fun middleweight title fight between two men who seek to control space with unique timing and styles that stand alone from their contemporaries.
Known as “The Last Stylebender,” Israel Adesanya took to martial arts at a young age and is no stranger performing on the big stage.
A cunning martial artist, Adesanya earned his moniker with his creative striking flow that helped him accrue titles in both the boxing and kickboxing arenas. Seamlessly moving through space, Adesanya will intelligently use feints and footwork to establish his reads and set up his shots accordingly. The reigning champ keeps whipping right hands and crushing check-hooks on a hair-trigger, while offering pinpoint counter-crosses from his southpaw stance.
When feeling in stride, the 30-year-old talent will unleash a dynamic array of kicks, whether they’re powerfully thrown from the rear or sneakily delivered off of his lead. And when Adesanya smells blood in the water, he will celebrate his reach by varying his punches, using extended hands to hide the kill-shots to come.
From hand traps that parlay into elbows to clinches that lead to knees, Adesanya shows solid answers at multiple ranges that will come in handy for this contest. But for as talented as Adesanya is, he, too, is not beyond being touched by fighters who know when and how to commit power.
Enter Yoel Romero.
One of the most intimidating characters in any division, Romero not only carries the physique of a superhero, but he can move like one too. From the springboard-like aerial assaults he uses to misdirect his opponent’s attention to the immediate explosions he hits once touching down on the mat, Romero is one of the most deceptive distance closers in the game. Using changes in tempo to lull his opposition into a false state of security, Romero can quickly change gears at the drop of a dime, which is probably why most of his opponents are a bit more gun-shy when facing him.
The 42-year-old phenom consistently layers his craft, often getting in on a takedown only to abandon ship at the last second. Typically, this will shake up the defensive radar of a Romero foe, making the takedown a real threat and focus. And as soon as he can get his opponent to drop their level in anticipation for a shot, the former Olympian will then fake low to explode high, unleashing hell in the form of flying knees.
Although Romero’s athleticism and agility allow him to conduct himself like a video-game character, he has seemingly taken the time to sharpen his boxing fundamentals in recent years – something that he tends to show off more from his orthodox stance.
Whether Romero’s hitting inside parries to shift forward off of his rear hand or sitting back and looking to counter with check-hooks and crosses of his own, the perrenial title threat has made undeniable strides in this range. Even though Adesanya will have to be careful to not get sucked into the Cuban’s game, Romero will also have to be not too committed to rolling and returning with punches considering how it’s cost him on the scorecards before.
Next point of interest: Potential wrestling threats
UFC 248 breakdown: Israel Adesanya can't buy what Yoel Romero sells – or else
