Staredowns! Adesanya Demands Eye Contact During Final Face Off

The middleweight champion refused to joke around with Strickland and motioned his challenger to look him in the eyes as they faced off for the final time before their Sydney fight.

While fighters weighed in for UFC 293 hours ago, the ceremonial weigh-ins just went down in front of a hyped Sydney, Australia crowd. In addition to stepping on the scale for show and having their morning weight read over the speakers, the fighters also got a chance to face off for the final time before stepping into the octagon to scrap.

Of course, you’re all really interested in seeing how Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland interacted during their staredown, right? Their first faceoff was a bit wonky, with Strickland refusing to take things serious and Adesanya debating on whether he really wanted to go square with “Tarzan.”

This time “The Last Stylebender” came right up to Strickland and motioned for his opponent to look him in the eyes. Strickland complied for a few moments before laughing and cracking more jokes.

The most intense staredown award for UFC 293 goes to Manel Kape and Felipe dos Santos. Kape has had a massive chip on his shoulder all week after his original highly ranked opponent Kai Kara-France withdrew from their bout. Felipe dos Santos was ported up from the Contender Series to serve as a spot filler, and Kape has vowed to demolish him when they fight. Based on the heat from their staredowns, it should be something to witness.

It wasn’t all anger and adrenaline. Tyson Pedro took a break from mean mugging Anton Turkalj to go hold his infant daughter, who was watching from the crowd.

The heavyweight co-main fighters were all business, with Tai Taivusa striking an old-timey boxing pose while Alexander Volkov simply stared into his eyes.

Here’s more of the staredowns from the UFC 293 ceremonial weigh-ins:

Justin Tafa vs. Austen Lane

Carlos Ulberg vs. Jung Da-un

Jack Jenkins vs. Chepe Mariscal

Jamie Mullarkey vs. John Makdessi

Blood Diamond vs. Charlie Radtke

Shane Young vs. Gabriel Miranda

Kevin Jousset vs. Kiefer Crosbie

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MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 293 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPNN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, followed by the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 293: “Adesanya vs. Strickalnd” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 293 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.