Israel Adesanya has to go back to the drawing board.
UFC 305’s highly-anticipated grudge match main event resulted in a successful first title defense for the new Middleweight champion, Dricus Du Plessis. South Africa’s “StillKnocks” was tested early by the former two-time champion, Adesanya, but ultimately came up big in round four when he secured a face crank and the tap (watch highlights).
The loss was in Adesanya’s first fight since his title loss to Sean Strickland by unanimous decision at UFC 293 in September 2023 (watch highlights). Although Adesanya looked sharp in the Octagon, he’s now 1-3 in his last four fights (24-4 overall). His fellow former champion, Michael Bisping, believes we’ve seen the last “Stylebender” title tilt.
“He looked great, he had moments of brilliance, certainly in round three when he was piecing Dricus Du Plessis up on the feet,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMA Junkie). “Ripping to the body, beautiful …