The legendary streak of the Last Stylebender comes to an end, as Israel Adesanya lost a close decision loss to Light Heavyweight champ Jan Błachowicz at UFC 259. With his win, Błachowicz completed his first title defense and set the groundwork for his own championship run.
The fight began very tense, both men throwing exploratory jabs and kicks for the opening minute. Adesanya began baiting shots and throwing counters as Błachowicz looked for the big left. Błachowicz got off some solid shots and a takedown attempt, but Adesanya defended well and stayed hot on the feet for the round.
Round two however, belonged to the Polish Powerhouse. With his jab starting to land, Błachowicz started pushing Adesanya and controlling the Octagon. He checked more of the leg kicks, and maintained a steady pace. Not even an accidental groin shot from Adesanya slowed him down. Towards the end of the round he landed a takedown from the clinch and, even though Adesanya quickly rebounded, set a standard for the rest of the fight.
Round three saw more heat from Stylebender. Błachowicz hit a double against the cage and began to take the back, but Adesanya quickly stung him with a combo as he regained his footing. It looked like Adesanya regained much of his vitality this round, finding the counter and avoiding bigger shots from the light Heavyweight champ. Błachowicz clinched against the cages, but didn’t go to the ground just yet.
Round four is where we saw the size difference start to appear. Looking solid on the feet, Adesanya was nonetheless taken down by Błachowicz and quickly gave up half guard. Błachowicz worked to pass, peppering the Kiwi with hammerfists as he tried to hip escape. Błachowicz racked up three minutes of control time before the round ended, but his gas tank looked to be low.
Round five saw an energized Adesanya light up an expended Błachowicz early on, landing a spinning back kick and multiple combos without giving up many big shots. But halfway through the round, Błachowicz landed another double landing this time in closed guard. Adesanya opened up seemingly looking to attack, and Błachowicz was able to pass to half guard and later mount. The clock ticked down, and Błachowicz rained down blow after blow looking to end the fight on an emphatic note. Adesanya scrambled to make space, but the buzzer rang before he could get back on the offensive. Soon after, the judges awarded Błachowicz the decision victory.
“I thought he’d be a little bit faster, but he hit harder than I thought,” Błachowicz said in a post-fight interview with commentator Joe Rogan. Błachowicz credited his size and grappling skills with helping him in the later rounds, as it was a known weak point in Adesanya’s game. This brings the champ to a 28-4 record.
Cool in victory and defeat, Adesanya took the loss in stride. “It’s just a bad day of training, but this one happened at the office,” he told Rogan. Adesanya claimed he’d return to heavyweight at some point, byt first wanted to defend his Middleweight title again. This loss puts Adesanya’s record to 20-1.
Błachowicz was also quick to announce his future plans, naming Glover Teixeira as his desired opponent. “I would like to fight against Glover next, because he deserves it,” he said.
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