UFC 248 free fight: Israel Adesanya captures undisputed middleweight crown

Israel Adesanya always knew his moment would come, and when it did, he’d rise to the occasion.

That moment came at UFC 243 when the undefeated Kiwi, already the interim middleweight champion, faced UFC 185-pound champ Robert Whittaker for the unified, undisputed middleweight crown at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia in October 2019.

Whittaker came out aggressively at the start of the fight as he looked to knock the super-calm former kickboxer out of his stride in the early exchanges. But as the round progressed Adesanya kept his cool and started to time the Australian’s attacks.

By the end of the opening round, Adesanya had taken charge, and put an exclamation point on proceedings with a perfectly-timed right-hand counter that dropped the defending champion in the final second of the round.

Adesanya was in complete control when the bout resumed for Round 2 and, although Whittaker persisted with his “walk forward, throw heavy” approach, Adesanya dipped and swerved his way out of range, then punished the Aussie with slick, sharp counters.

Eventually, those counter shots proved decisive as Adesanya lit up Whittaker with a brilliant right-left combination that sent the champion crashing to the canvas for a show-stealing, title-winning knockout.

Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) returns to action on Saturday in the main event of UFC 248 in Las Vegas, when he takes on dangerous Cuban challenger Yoel Romero (13-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC). Ahead of that clash, relive the brilliance of “The Last Stylebender” in his win over Whittaker in the video above.