Israel Adesanya will go down as one of the greatest MMA stars ever but has he ever lost a UFC fight?
Israel Adesanya is one of the best to have ever stepped foot into the combat sports world. The New Zealander, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, has held the UFC Middleweight title twice and is the current champion.
Adesanya also holds an incredible kickboxing record and won several titles in that sport before making the move to MMA. However, Israel Adesanya has two losses in his UFC career.
The 34-year-old has defeated some of the biggest names in the sport like Anderson Silva and Robert Whittaker to claim the Middleweight title, and no one expected him to lose a fight.
He was 20-0 after his win over Paulo Costa at UFC 253, but Adesanya’s next fight got everyone talking. The Last Stylebender wanted to become a two-division champion, a rare feat in the UFC and challenged then-champion Jan Blachowicz for a fight.
Blachowicz was the Light Heavyweight champion then, and Adesanya decided to go for the belt. However, the Kiwi was defeated by Blachowicz via unanimous decision at UFC 259.
Adesanya was still the UFC Middleweight Champion and won his next three fights as he defended his belt. But, more was to come in the way of shock losses for the Kiwi.
The rise of Alex Pereira against Israel Adesanya
While Israel Adesanya held an incredible kickboxing record, he also had a few losses in that sport. Adesanya lost 5 kickboxing fights in his career, and only one of them was a knockout.
That came at the hands of Brazilian star, Alex Pereira. This took place in Adesanya’s last kickboxing fight which took place in 2017.
Pereira also is the only kickboxer to have defeated Adesanya twice, and he was the Kiwi’s next title challenger at UFC 281.
The Brazilian was more than a formidable foe for the champion as he produced one of the greatest UFC moments ever.
Pereira became the first person to knockout Adesanya in an MMA fight at UFC 281. This was Adesanya’s second loss in his MMA career, and it sent shockwaves around the world.
Some had predicted Pereira was going to be tough for Adesanya, and the Brazilian proved it. However, Adesanya was not done yet.
He came back to fight Pereira for a second time in the UFC. This time, it was Adesanya who got the highlight reel knockout to reclaim his belt at UFC 287.
Pereira and Adesanya seem to have finished their rivalry for now. Adesanya is still the Middleweight champion while Pereira has moved up to the Light Heavyweight division as he seeks a second title.
Adesanya’s next fight is against Sean Strickland at UFC 293. And, it is to be seen if he can keep his belt.
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