Israel Adesanya and the Real Winners and Losers from UFC 253

Israel Adesanya (20-0, 15 KO) hasn't quite reached the point in his career where the fights are about more than individual opponents or fleeting moments of fame. But, with a victory over Paulo Costa, Adesanya is about to enter the historical conversation and that rarefied air where every bout becomes about legacy and deciding where he stands among the all-time legends of the sport.

Maybe it seems early to cast Adesanya in this light. After all, the 31-year-old is only now entering his prime. But not only did this win secure his position as the best fighter in the sport, it arguably makes him the best middleweights to ever put on a pair of gloves.

Add a bout between Jan Blachowicz and Dominick Reyes to crown a new light heavyweight king and you had the raw materials for one of those UFC events no one would ever forget. 

It was a great night of UFC action, but, as always, determining the winners and losers isn't as simple as looking at the final results. What follows are the real winners and losers of a fight night sure to remembered for years to come. 

Losers: Pound for Pound contenders

OK, maybe this isn't fair. And, yes, surely it's the product of immediacy bias and the excitement that follows an epic title fight.

But Israel Adesanya is the best fighter in the world. 

The competition in the middleweight division has never been better. Dominating the weight class requires a better fighter too. Adesanya is that guy, combining Anderson Silva's stylish striking with a killer instinct and aggression the former champion sometimes lacked.

Costa, a human bulldozer with power to spare, didn't even begin to offer a real challenge. It looked like Adesanya was playing a video game on easy mode, effortlessly tearing his opponent's leg to pieces before targeting his enormous head for the coup de grace.

At 31, Adesanya is at the absolute peak of his powers. His game is brilliantly designed to put opponents in a lose/lose situation. If you don't come forward, he'll shred your leg and wreck your body with his long legs. When you do attack, his counter game and reflexes are the best in the game. 

He's the ultimate darned if you do and darned if you don't fighter—and it's an absolute pleasure to watch him compete.

Winner: Jon Jones

If you'd claimed back in 2017 that Jan Blachowicz would eventually claim UFC gold, well, people would have looked at you a little funny.

After all, the Polish standout was in the middle of losing four of five fights at that point and didn't seem competitive with the division's best fighters. With his 35th birthday looming, it he sure seemed like a fighter whose best days were behind him.

But instead of fading away, Blachowicz won eight of his last nine fights and absolutely wrecked Dominick Reyes to win the light heavyweight title. After brutalizing his body with heavy kicks in the first round, he came for Reyes' head in the second, smashing his face, knocking him silly and claiming the UFC title.

Now, he has the former champion in his sights.

"Jon Jones, where are you? Don't be a quitter," Blachowicz said on his post-fight interview. "I'm here. This is how we do it in Poland. I'm waiting for you."

For Jones, the Blachowicz win was a godsend. Not only would he be a new opponent, but his destruction of an opponent Jones himself struggled with adds some intrigue the division has been missing as Jones has sleepwalked through a series of uninspiring contenders.

Jones seems intent on testing himself at heavyweight. But, when he's ready to come back to 205 pounds, the new champion appears more than willing to welcome him home.

Loser: Fans

I only have one complaint about the Brandon Royval versus Kai Kara-France flyweight bout—I wanted more!

The two engaged in one of those wild fights that reminds fans why they became obsessed with the sport in the first place. The 125-pound contenders combined grappling, striking and visceral excitement in a way no other sport can quite match. 

Royval was dropped with a strong right hand early in the first round, then collapsed again to a knee after jumping too quickly to his feet. But this is mixed martial arts—so of course he almost immediately landed a wicked spinning elbow that put him right back in the hunt.

After one of the best rounds of the year, Royval ended the bout quickly in the second round. 

"My dumb ass got dropped twice, but other than that I feel good," Royval said after the fight. "...F--k it. I get in there and I fight. That's all there is to it, right?" 

Although Royval was tough on himself after the fight, one thing is indisputable at this point. Every time he steps into a cage, it's immediately must-see television.

Winner: Diversity

Ketlen Vieira is one of the best grapplers in the world at 135 pounds, an expert in Judo, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and amateur wrestling.

Don't want to take my word for it? A couple of years ago she absolutely demolished former Olympian Sara McMann in a star-making performance.

But that mat prowess didn't earn the Brazilian a victory against Sijara Eubanks at UFC 253, though a second round takedown certainly didn't hurt. Instead, she stood tall and proud in the middle of the cage, slinging heavy leather and winning the striking battle with the highly regarded Eubanks. 

Before injuries slowed her down, Vieira seemed destined to climb all the way to the top of the division. After showing new wrinkles in an already impressive game, that future still seems very, very possible. 

Winner: Foul Language

"Mean" Hakeem Dawodu lived up to his nickname against a game Zubaira Tukhugov in the main card opener, yelling at his opponent when he wasn't busy stuffing all his takedowns and punching him square in the face. He was eventually warned by the referee for his foul mouth, because apparently fans watching two men attempt to knock each other unconscious are too delicate for a few bad words.

But it was after winning the bout that Dawodu said something that will resonate with many watching, mentioning the Black Lives Matter movement and letting his voice be heard.

"They are trying to bring us down," he told announcer Jon Anik after the fight. "I refuse to kneel. We've been kneeling for too long."

Winner: Abu Dhabi and Fight Island

UFC Embedded is a great tool to both promote the athletes and the UFC brand. I always walk away from the YouTube series feeling I know a little more about all the fighters involved. If you didn't have a rooting interest going in, you typically do coming out. 

But recently, the show has served a duel purpose. Alongside main eventers Adesanya and Costa, the real winners in the pre-fight promotion were Abu Dhabi and "Fight Island." If you could watch the five-part series and not want to immediately travel to the Middle Eastern paradise depicted on-screen, you're a different kind of animal than I am.

That, of course, is the whole point.

"UFC will become  a key component of Abu Dhabi’s thriving events calendar for the next five years," HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman, DCT Abu Dhabi told UFC.com. "This spectacular mixed martial arts event, which has a huge following around the world, will bring heightened impetus to visitation in the third quarter for the emirate and will no doubt boost incoming tourist numbers as fight fans across the world gather in Abu Dhabi.”

In 2020, we're constantly being marketed to. I'm aware of it and it still worked on me. That's the scary power of media and the allure of wealth and beauty. 

Loser: The Ibragimov Hype Train

The 25-year old former M-1 champion entered the UFC's light heavyweight division last August with an undefeated record and some significant hype behind him. But, after four consecutive losses inside the Octagon, it's apparent that his reputation was more the product of his ineffectual competition and less the result of his own talent.

This was likely his final UFC appearance for the time being—and it should be. Danilo Marques is the kind of opponent selected for the purposes of making you look strong. Failing against this level of opposition makes it clear that Ibragimov isn't capable of competing at this level.

Winner: Old School MMA

MMA has changed dramatically in the 26 years since Royce Gracie shocked the world at UFC 1. Techniques that once worked routinely have fallen out of fashion as fighters have grown more sophisticated and the community has learned more and more about what works in the cage and what doesn't.

That's what makes it so cool for long-time fans to see something from back in the day rear its head in contemporary MMA. In the days of when amateur wrestling behemoths first rattled the cage with their power-based games, you could win bouts with an old fashioned scarf hold or headlock.

And, as Juan Espino proved at UFC 253, you still can! And, when it happens, all the old heads will give a silent fist pump and share a thought or two for the men who built this sport. 

Winner: Father Time 

Diego Sanchez looked every one of his 38 years against Jake Matthews in a depressing undercard affair. The wear of nearly two decades in the cage, combined with the extra fifteen pounds allotted for the welterweight division, combined to slow the famous whirlwind of a fighter down to human speed. 

By the third round, Matthews was painting the canvas with Sanchez's fluids, dragging him around on the mat as the blood poured from a bad cut over the former Ultimate Fighter's right eye. Sanchez, as you'd expect, never quit. But when both you and your opponent are covered in your blood, that's not a good thing.

As ever, Father Time remains undefeated.

Losers: Fighters Cutting Weight

Many people in the sport think of the weight cut as the fight before the fight. I've interviewed hundreds of MMA athletes in my career—almost all of them consider the weight cutting process to be the hardest part of their job. 

Considering that job also includes being punched in the face, that's really saying something. 

While UFC rarely highlights this part of the fight game in their official promotion for an event, the specter of weight cutting hangs over every show. Even for this main event, Adesanya was quick to point out how he anticipated Costa would be impacted by the extra one pound cut required for a title fight.

"I can see he's sucked out," Adesanya said at the pre-fight press conference. "He's dry. The sun's affecting him. He's never made 185 on the dot. And that one pound, that 600 grams, is a lot. Especially if you've never been there before."

Recently HBO's Real Sports highlighted the problem on their award-winning show, focusing on fighter Ramsey Nijem's brutal weight cut before a Professional Fighters' League bout. 

“I just am physically killing myself, literally killing myself trying to get to get to this weight," Nijem told HBO (H/T Awful Announcing). "And by the time we get to the fight, I don’t even f--king care. That becomes the fight. It’s harder than a fight."

Final Results

Israel Adesanya def. Paulo Costa by TKO (punches) at 3:59 of Round Two.
Jan Blachowicz def. Dominick Reyes by TKO (punches) at 4:36 of Round Two. 
Brandon Royval def. Kai Kara-France by submission (guillotine choke) at 0:48 of Round Two.
Ketlen Vieira def. Sijara Eubanks by unanimous decision. 
Hakeem Dawodu def. Zubaira Tukhugov by unanimous decision. 
Brad Riddell def. Alex Da Silva by unanimous decision. 
Jake Matthews def. Diego Sanchez by unanimous decision.
Ludovit Klein def. Shane Young by KO (head kick and punches) at 1:16 of Round One.
William Knight def. Aleksa Camur by unanimous decision.
Juan Espino def Jeff Hughes by submission (scarf hold) at 3:48 of Round One. 
Danilo Marques def. Khadis Ibragimov by unanimous decision.