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Adesanya took a far different route to win his return date with
Robert
Whittaker. The City Kickboxing stalwart outdueled his rival over five-closely
contested rounds to retain his middleweight crown in the
UFC 271 headliner at the Toyota Center in Houston on Saturday
night. All three cageside judges struck tallies for Adesanya:
48-47, 48-47, and 49-46. It was a far cry from their first meeting,
when Adesanya claimed the 185-pound title with a second-round KO of
Whittaker at
UFC 243 in October 2019.
“I knew he was gonna bring everything because last time I took
everything away from him,” Adesanya said. “And he had nothing to
lose. Like I said, I’m the champ. If you want it, come get it.”
Adesanya (22-1, 11-1 UFC) was at his best in the opening round,
when he repeatedly chopped away at Whittaker’s leg with low kicks
and sat him down with a laser straight left. While it briefly
seemed as though a rout might be underway, Whittaker (23-6, 14-4
UFC) displayed his resolve over the course of the fight, attacking
with left jabs and left hooks while effectively blending in
takedowns and clinch work. Although “The Reaper” couldn’t keep
Adesanya down for any significant period of time, the different
aspects of his offense were enough to make the fight
interesting.
“I know I started off rocky in the first round, but I feel like I
took every round after that,” Whittaker said. “I’m happy that I
fought my heart out and I left it here. I thought I did enough (to
win).”
Ultimately, Adesanya’s varied striking and cage control were enough
to get the nod, as he continued his assault on Whittaker’s legs
throughout the contest while blending other attacks when the
opportunity arose. In the aftermath of his latest triumph, Adesanya
targeted a June return against Jared
Cannonier, who defeated Derek
Brunson earlier on the card.
Tuivasa Scores Faceplant KO Against Lewis
Tai
Tuivasa is the rare fighter that went toe-to-toe in a slugfest
with Derrick
Lewis and lived to tell the tale.
In fact, the affable Australian did far more than that: He knocked
Lewis, the
Ultimate Fighting Championship’s all-time knockout leader, out
cold in his hometown in the evening’s heavyweight co-main event. A
vicious standing elbow against the fence from Tuivasa (14-3, 8-3
UFC) sent Lewis (26-9, 17-7 UFC) face-first to the canvas, bringing
an instant end to the contest 1:40 into Round 2.
“That’s the king of knockouts. Much respect to Derrick. But like I
said: I’m young and I’m upcoming and I’m taking over now,” Tuivasa
said.
“I like throwing elbows. I like getting nitty-gritty. I’m f—-ing
always down to get down, baby.”
Tuivasa had to survive heavy fire to earn his fifth straight UFC
triumph. Lewis executed a trip takedown in Round 1 and then
unloaded with a series of right hands on the mat. A lesser fighter
might not have survived the blows, but Tuivasa returned to his feet
to swing away and both heavyweights made it to the final horn.
Then, Tuivasa was on the defensive early in the second period when
a Lewis combination had him retreating toward the fence. A wild
exchange ensued and Tuivasa rocked “The Black Beast” with one elbow
before shoving his foe against the fence and landing the decisive
blow.
Cannonier Elbows Bludgeon Brunson
Jared
Cannonier staked his claim to the No. 1 contender’s spot in the
UFC middleweight division, authoring an emphatic finish of fellow
contender Derek
Brunson. The MMA Lab product rendered Brunson unconscious with
a trio of brutal elbows on the canvas at the 4:29 mark of Round 2.
“The Killa Gorilla” has been victorious in five of his last six
Octagon appearances.
Brunson (23-8, 14-6 UFC) put his game plan to work in the opening
stanza, as he grounded Cannonier (15-5, 8-5 UFC) twice and floored
him with a counter right hook late in the period. Brunson’s
inability to finish his foe with an ensuing rear-naked choke in the
waning seconds proved to be costly, however. The North Carolina
native’s body language changed early in the second round when he
took Cannonier down and then appeared to be stunned by a right hook
when the combatants returned to their feet.
From there, Cannonier repeatedly tagged his adversary with right
hands before staggering Brunson with a short standing elbow and
follow-up backfist in close quarters. Cannonier then shoved Brunson
to the mat, tied up his right arm and unloaded the fight-finishing
salvo from top position. Brunson sees a five-bout winning streak
snapped in defeat.
‘Moicano’ Rocks, Submits Hernandez
Former featherweight competitor Renato
Carneiro won for the third time in four 155-pound appearances,
submitting Factory X member Alexander
Hernandez with a rear-naked choke. “Moicano” forced Hernandez
to ask out of the fight at the 1:23 mark of Round 2. Carneiro’s
last four UFC triumphs have come via rear-naked choke.
Hernandez (13-5, 5-4 UFC) appeared to be gaining momentum late in
Round 1, when he returned to his feet after being taken down and
put Carneiro (16-4-1, 8-4 UFC) on his heels with a blend of
punching combinations and kicks. The tide shifted in the second
period, as Carneiro rocked Hernandez with a pair of clean right
hands and then countered a desperation shot with a knee to the
body. The Brazilian then powered his man to the canvas,
transitioned to the fight-ending choke and elicited the tapout in
short order.
Green Sweeps Scorecards Against Haqparast
Bobby
Green’s unique boxing style carried him to a clear-cut
unanimous verdict over Tristar Gym representative Nasrat
Haqparast in a featured lightweight encounter. The former King
of the Cage titleholder swept the scorecards with a trio of 30-27
tallies. “King” has been victorious in five of his last seven UFC
appearances.
It was a classic Green (29-12, 10-7-1 UFC) performance in many
respects. Hands held low, he repeatedly split Haqparat’s guard with
straight punches while slipping and rolling away from many of his
opponent’s most dangerous offerings. Over time, Haqparast’s face
wore the damage from Green’s assault, as his face was reddened and
his nose was bloodied. While Haqparast (13-5, 4-3 UFC) continued to
press forward until the final horn, he couldn’t match the output
from Green’s stick-and-move approach in losing his second
consecutive bout.
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UFC 271 Prelims: Ageless Arlovski Wins Third Straight, Takes Split
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