BEVERLY HILLS, September 26, (THEWILL) – Nigerian fighting machine, Israel Adesanya Adesanya, the UFC middleweight champion, knocked out Brazilian fighter, Paulo Costa in the second-round of Saturday’s fight to retain his title.
Adesanya’s win is the 20th career MMA victory for him.
The match showed slow action during the first round as both fighters were cautious and so did very little.
Adesanya’s strategy was apparent early as he kept distance and unloaded with kicks to Costa’s lead leg, alternating between kicks to the outside and stomp kicks to the knee. As Adesanya landed, Costa would respond with taunts before trying to cut off the cage. But Adesanya’s footwork was on-point, allowing him to slide away from any danger before resuming his leg attacks.
Costa looked to turn things up in Round 2, trying to pressure a bit more, but Adesanya continued to avoid the exchanges and began to mix in strikes to the head. A head kick from Adesanya opened a cut above Costa’s eye, and suddenly the challenger’s taunts stopped as he began to move backward.
As Costa finally got his wish and the two began to exchange in close quarters, Adesanya landed a glancing blow off Costa’s temple, sending him tumbling to the canvas. Adesanya wasted no time following Costa to the ground, unleashing a brutal flurry of strikes and forcing the referee to call a halt to the action at the 3:59 mark of Round 2.
“I’ve been telling you guys, but everyone thinks … like Roy Jones said, ‘Y’all must have forgot’ because of what happened last time,” Adesanya said after his win. “I had to remind the world who’s the best.”
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With the victory, Adesanya improved to 20-0 and dispatched a man many felt was his toughest challenger in the division. With options for fresh challenges dwindling after just two title defenses, Adesanya said he had already notified the man who could be next up of the opportunity ahead.
“I already DMed Jared Cannonier,” Adesanya said. “He’s a great dude, I like his energy. I said, ‘You beat Robert Whittaker and you’re next.’ If he beats Robert Whittaker, he’s next.”
THEWILL reports that Adesanya emerged UFC middleweight champion after he defeated Robert Whittaker at UFC 243 last October by TKO.
*** CBS Sports contributed to this report.
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