Free Fight! Adesanya And Gastelum Go To War

Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images

Israel Adesanya will look to score his second defense of his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight title this Saturday (Sept. 26, 2020) when he takes on Paulo Costa in the main event of UFC 253 on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, exclusively on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV).

Before then, let’s take a small trip back in time to witness the first time “The Last Stylebender” tasted UFC gold. Back in February of 2019, Adesanya faced Kelvin Gastelum for the interim 185-pound title at UFC 236 in Atlanta, GA.

Over the course of 25 minutes, the two men put on one hell of a show, with each man landing solid strikes in what proved to be an all-out striking affair. After 25 minutes, fight fans were treated to a “Fight of the Night” performance which resulted in Adesanya winning the interim strap. He has since defended it once against Yoel Romero, but his championship bout against “The Eraser” is one everybody has been waiting for.

The co-main event of UFC 253 will see Dominick Reyes and Jan Blachowicz battle for the Light Heavyweight title left behind by Jon Jones.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 253 fight card this weekend, starting with the early ESPN 2/ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance (also on ESPN 2/ESPN+) at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 253: “Adesanya vs. Costa” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.