UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya took care of business Saturday night and successfully defended his belt against Paulo Costa at UFC 253.
The Last Stylebender made it look easy, too, avoiding Costa's dangerous power while focusing his attack on the legs of his challenger. Costa showed some gamesmanship throughout the first round, despite repeated shots to his legs. The Brazilian challenger continued to taunt the champion, although the swelling on his leg seemed to tell a different story.
Despite all of Costa's showboating antics, he seemed hesitant to throw any punches or kicks. Adesanya continued to pick apart his lead leg while keeping him honest with jabs from a distance.
The strategy continued into the second. With Costa's power neutralized and his mobility hampered, Adesanya was able to become more aggressive in his attack. He landed a kick to Costa's head that opened up a cut over his right eye and from there it was only a matter of time. Adesanya showed great defensive skill in avoiding Costa's punches and landed a left hand that put the challenger on the deck. Sensing a finish, Adesanya jump onto his opponent and began with the ground strikes until referee Jason Herzog called a stop to the match at 3:59 of round two.
Adesanya's impressive performance moved him to a perfect 20-0 while Costa fell to 13-1. When asked who he was looking to fight next, Adesanya said Jared Cannonier, whom he respects, deserves as hot if he can take care of business against Robert Whittaker.