The whole world was against Strickland, who, however, did not leave any chance to Adesanya.
Sean Strickland put on a shocking performance at UFC 293, defeating Israel Adesanya to win the UFC middleweight title. In the first round, Adesanya controlled the situation with good footwork and movement in the cage. Strickland surprised him with a hard punch that stunned the champion. Adesanya fell to the floor and Strickland rush for a finish with punches, but "The Last Stylebender" managed to survive. Adesanya recovered early in the second round and was trying to keep Strickland at distance, with more movement and selective striking. In the third and fourth rounds, Strickland continued to attack with good power shots and pinned the champion against the cage wall. The Australian couldn't do much because of Sean's relentless press and in the fifth round he was hit again. In the end, Strickland did more than enough to pull off a unanimous decision victory and one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.