UFC 236's co-main event produced a thrilling five-round fight for the interim middleweight title and in the end, it was Israel Adesanya who came out with the gold.
In a fight that featured multiple turning points, it was the fifth round that proved to be the difference maker for Adesanya. Bloodied and with a swollen eye, Adesanya dug deep and finished the match strong.
Heading into the final round, it looked like the championship could go either way. The excitement really picked up midway through the round when both fighters wrestled and attempted to outmaneuver the other. But both quickly made it to their feet and the slugging once again commenced; however, it was Adesanya who landed the heavy hits, droppping a tired Gastelum to the mat with about one minute to go.
Sensing Gastelum was out of gas, Adesanya turned up the heat and landed heavy blow after heavy blow. With about 15-seconds left in the round, it looked like Adesanya might finally end it, but Gastelum showed tremendous heart and somehow kept going. I'm honestly surprised the ref didn't end it; Gastelum may have been swinging, but he was clearly out of it. He was looking like Apollo Creed vs Ivan Dragon at the end.
Check out some of the highlights from UFC 236's middleweight title fight.
With the win, Israel Adesanya becomes the second Nigeria-born fighter to win a UFC title.
Kamaru Usman became the first when he defeated Tyron Woodley to win the welterweight title at UFC 235 last month.