A victorious Adesanya feels that things could’ve been better inside of the Octagon at UFC 230, but feels that he handled everything during fight week like a champion.
“Yeah, definitely (it could have gone better), but I’m happy with the result. I’m happy with the way it panned out, it was history…it was history for me. This was my first fight at MSG, it probably won’t be my last. I was happy with every…the whole week, everything from the media works…the weight cut to the fight itself and the post-fight. The post-fight media scrum as well, I handled everything like a champ. It let me know I’m in the right spot, doing the right things. I’m just gonna keep going,” says Adesanya in an exclusive interview with Fightful’s James Lynch.
The middleweight contender is now sitting at #6 in the UFC Middleweight Division rankings, which is an amazing accomplishment considering that he has fought just four times in the UFC.
Yair Rodriguez may have had the knockout of the year, if not all time at UFC Fight Night Denver, but Adesanya has some words for those who say Rodriguez’s elbow strike was a lucky shot.
“I was at home and I had to do my online show, Frenemies with Dan right afterwards so I can talk about it. Yeah that was crazy, I see a lot of people saying that was a lucky knockout, really smart people and legends of the game (were also saying that). The example they gave was that he threw that twice before hand and failed, but this time he got it. I think its timing and knowing where the (opponent’s) head is going to be, not where it is…but where its gonna be. His argument was that he threw it twice before hand and failed, was that instinct and timing as well? Shit happens, its a knockout or whatever. My counter argument is against Brad Tavares, in the first round I was throwing my jab and I wasn’t landing it. Then eventually in the second round, I was bloodying up his face with my jab. That’s not luck, that is timing and trial and error and readjustment…resetting. Legends sometimes and people in the game who are supposed to be really smart, calls something luck. If I cover my eyes and throw something and it hits, well this guy looked at him, ducked his head and he couldn’t see, but knew where the head was gonna be to readjust it and boom…hit him. That was sick, that was some matrix type shit. Don’t at me, that was not luck. I don’t believe it lucky shots, that was well timed precision…precise strikes. That one, he failed twice and on the thrice, nailed it,” says Adesanya.
There is no word yet on when Adesanya will fight next, but with only five fighters ranked ahead of him, another win could put the competitor in line for a shot at the UFC Middleweight Title.
