Israel Adesanya, Nigerian-New Zealander mixed martial artist, has retained his middleweight title by defeating Marvin Vettori via unanimous decision.
All three judges scored the bout 50-45 for Adesanya at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona.
Adesanya largely dominated the fight from start to finish, using his leg kicks as a major debilitating weapon against Vettori.
Although the Italian did secure multiple takedowns in the fight, they were few and far between and were often reversed by the Kiwi.
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Vettori’s best moment came in the third round when he got Adesanya on his back and worked for a rear-naked choke. However, the struggle was brief and Adesanya wiggled his way out to land on top.
The ‘Last Stylebender’ — who failed to take the light heavyweight belt off Jan Blachowicz in March — had also defeated the ‘Italian Dream’ back in 2018.
In his post-fight interview, Adesanya said he wants a rematch with Robert Whittaker in Auckland, New Zealand.
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The 31-year-old knocked out Whittaker in October 2019 to become the undisputed champion in the middleweight category.
“You don’t get to decide. I get to decide. Because I’m the mother f—ing king,” Adesanya said.
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