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It was a disconcerting sight: Sean Strickland, with his hands low and a sheepish look across his face, shuffling towards one of the most devastating punchers in the UFC. There is no ‘but’ to follow; Alex Pereira swatted the American down to a knee with a signature left hook, Strickland’s arms flailing helplessly before he stood up into a right cross, which sent him cascading dangerously to the canvas. The manner of this demise at the heavy hands of the Brazilian brought to mind a mythical image: that of a lemming wandering mindlessly off a cliff. Yet Strickland’s approach until that point had actually been understandable – not as understandable as grappling with Pereira, as most expected him to, but sensible in a certain sense. The southpaw was pressing forward relentlessly with constant output, fighting behind a jolting jab, trying to prevent Pereira from setting his feet to muster power. Pereira, however, exploited Strickland’s reflexes. With kicks and jabs to the body, Pereira gradually lured Strickland’s habitual parries away from his head. Then, with one subtle, feinted crouch, Pereira created space to curve a left hook onto the chin of the American. With that, Strickland was undone – as was his six-fight win streak, which had stretched from 2022 back to 2018. In his next fight, the 32-year-old was again beaten, losing a split decision to Jared Cannonier. Just a few weeks prior, Pereira had stopped champion Israel Adesanya against the fence, moving to 3-0 overall against his old kickboxing rival, despite the latter’s vast experiential advantage in MMA. Adesanya would bounce back five months later, regaining the middleweight title at the first attempt with his own knockout of Pereira, who would make a quick turnaround with a successful debut at light-heavyweight in July. All the while, Strickland followed the examples set by Adesanya and Pereira, bouncing back with a victory; two, in fact. First, the controversial, outspoken American would outpoint Nassourdine Imavov in January, stepping in as a late-notice replacement. Then, in July, Strickland proved wrong many fans by stopping Abus Magomedov in the second round, before making an impassioned callout of Adesanya – whom he has mocked regularly in recent years, from a distance and from mere metres away. Still, the UFC seemed set to overlook Strickland, who once expressed his desire to ‘kill’ an opponent someday (not that they would have overlooked him because of that or any kind of controversial comment, based on past cases). “If I killed somebody in the ring, it’d f***ing make me very happy,” he said in 2021, demonstrating that he is better at employing his fists – and he is often criticised for that ability, even – than using any filter. “Like, if Uriah [Hall] hits me and maybe I have a brain aneurysm and die, you’ll hear me saying: ‘I’m okay, that’s a good death.’ We’re all going to die sometime. You know, might as well end in a good way. We’re all going to the same place, man. It’s either gonna be then or now. Just enjoy it.” Meanwhile, his teasing of Adesanya, who is as flamboyant outside the ring as he is in it, has relied heavily on outdated jibes with an uncomfortable undertone. In response to one recurring slight, Adesanya has vowed to knock out Strickland with fists adorned with painted nails. And the Nigerian-New Zealander, 34, will get the chance to do that on Saturday, when he defends his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 293 in Sydney. For Strickland’s campaign to fight Adesanya eventually paid off, specifically when Dricus Du Plessis – towards whom the champion holds a grave grudge – was taken out of the title picture due to injury. Adesanya vs Du Plessis may yet come to pass, and if it does, Adesanya will likely have more harsh words for the South African, at whom he has already lashed out viciously. It is worth noting at this point that Adesanya himself has gotten away with distasteful comments before, and that many fans believe he has misconstrued certain points made by Du Plessis. In any case, first up for him is Strickland. Adesanya has been the betting favourite in all but one of his UFC bouts, even his rematch with Pereira, and that is no different against Strickland. The “Last Stylebender” is expected to dissect and damage his challenger at will. While Adesanya possesses less power than Pereira, he is an even more dynamic striker than the Brazilian, and he can employ the kind of counter-strikes that Strickland risks walking straight into – if the latter’s approach against Pereira is anything to go by. Adesanya’s fans are excited by that prospect. Many of Strickland’s fans have been more enthused by the verbal warfare than the impending physical warfare. Some have forgiven Strickland for certain comments due to his recollections of a concerning, upsetting relationship with his late father. Adesanya, who lives for nights and atmospheres like Saturday’s in Sydney, will not allow himself to forgive Strickland for a single word. The champion has always harnessed anything and everything to hype himself up for a title showdown. The build to UFC 293 has already threatened to turn ugly. Adesanya, famed for his beautifully destructive performances, will hope to turn things ugly for Strickland when the cage door closes. Read More Adesanya vs Strickland live stream: How to watch UFC 293 online and on TV this weekend Jared Cannonier revealed as back-up fighter for Adesanya vs Strickland at UFC 293 Conor McGregor finally receives black belt in jiu-jitsu Back-up fighter revealed for Adesanya vs Strickland at UFC 293 Mark Zuckerberg trains with UFC champions on speedboat UFC 293 card in full as Adesanya defends title against Strickland this weekend

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Israel Adesanya takes on Sean Strickland in the main event of UFC 293 this weekend, defending the middleweight title in Sydney. Adesanya began his second reign as champion in April, knocking out Alex Pereira to finally earn a win over his old rival, who took the belt from Adesanya in November. Now, the Nigerian-New Zealander defends the gold against Strickland, with the controversial contender entering Australia on a two-fight win streak. American Strickland, ranked fifth, was Adesanya’s second choice for a challenger here; the champion had his eyes on Dricus Du Plessis, but the South African sustained an injury to delay that potential grudge match. Many fans, however, are excited to see Strickland (27-5) finally get his shot at Adesanya (24-2). Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is UFC 293? The event is set to take place on Saturday 9 September, at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. The early prelims are due to begin at 11.30pm BST (3.30pm PT, 5.30pm CT, 6.30pm ET), with the regular prelims following at 1am BST on Sunday 10 September (5pm PT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET on Saturday). The main card is then scheduled for 3am BST on Sunday (7pm PT, 9pm CT, 10pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The card will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help: Get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Odds Adesanya – 2/13 Strickland – 9/2 Via Betway. • Get all the latest UFC betting sites’ offers Full card (subject to change) Main card Israel Adesanya (C) vs Sean Strickland (middleweight title) Tai Tuivasa vs Alexander Volkov (heavyweight) Manel Kape vs Felipe dos Santos (flyweight) Justin Tafa vs Austen Lane (heavyweight) Tyson Pedro vs Anton Turkalj (light-heavyweight) Prelims Carlos Ulberg vs Da Woon Jung (light-heavyweight) Jack Jenkins vs Chepe Mariscal (featherweight) Jamie Mullarkey vs John Makdessi (lightweight) Nasrat Haqparast vs Landon Quinones (lightweight) Early prelims Mike Diamond vs Charlie Radtke (welterweight) Shane Young vs Gabriel Miranda (featherweight) Kevin Jousset vs Kiefer Crosbie (welterweight) Read More Deja vu for Ciryl Gane as heavyweight scores statement win at UFC Paris UFC president Dana White hits out at ‘idiot’ who tried to break into his house UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year Conor McGregor finally receives black belt in jiu-jitsu Mark Zuckerberg trains with UFC champions on speedboat Former Tyson Fury opponent backs Francis Ngannou to drop ‘Gypsy King’

The middleweight title is on the line in the main event of UFC 293 this weekend, as Israel Adesanya defends the belt against Sean Strickland. Adesanya became a two-time champion in April, knocking out Alex Pereira to take back the gold that he lost to his old rival in November. The Nigerian-New Zealander was eyeing a fight with Dricus Du Plessis as the first title defence of his second reign, but Du Plessis is recovering from an injury, opening the door for the controversial Strickland. Ranked fifth, Strickland (27-5) enters Australia on a two-fight win streak, with many fans interested to see and hear the American’s verbal exchanges with Adesanya (24-2) this week. Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is UFC 293? The event is set to take place on Saturday 9 September, at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. The early prelims are due to begin at 11.30pm BST (3.30pm PT, 5.30pm CT, 6.30pm ET), with the regular prelims following at 1am BST on Sunday 10 September (5pm PT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET on Saturday). The main card is then scheduled for 3am BST on Sunday (7pm PT, 9pm CT, 10pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The card will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help: Get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Odds Adesanya – 2/13 Strickland – 9/2 Via Betway. • Get all the latest UFC betting sites’ offers Full card (subject to change) Main card Israel Adesanya (C) vs Sean Strickland (middleweight title) Tai Tuivasa vs Alexander Volkov (heavyweight) Manel Kape vs Felipe dos Santos (flyweight) Justin Tafa vs Austen Lane (heavyweight) Tyson Pedro vs Anton Turkalj (light-heavyweight) Prelims Carlos Ulberg vs Da Woon Jung (light-heavyweight) Jack Jenkins vs Chepe Mariscal (featherweight) Jamie Mullarkey vs John Makdessi (lightweight) Nasrat Haqparast vs Landon Quinones (lightweight) Early prelims Mike Diamond vs Charlie Radtke (welterweight) Shane Young vs Gabriel Miranda (featherweight) Kevin Jousset vs Kiefer Crosbie (welterweight) Read More Deja vu for Ciryl Gane as heavyweight scores statement win at UFC Paris UFC president Dana White hits out at ‘idiot’ who tried to break into his house UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year