Israel Adesanya will make history, submit crotch-sniffing Sean Strickland at UFC 293 and ‘take some breaths away’

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya wants to make history and submit an opponent for the first time in his MMA career. The means to that end is tapping Sean Strickland in the UFC 293 pay-per-view (PPV) main event this Sat. night (Sept. 9, 2023) at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.

I guess “The Last Stylebender” didn’t get the memo: jiu jitsu doesn’t work!

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MASSIVE MIDDLEWEIGHT MATCH! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) makes its highly anticipated return to Sydney, Australia, for the first time in five years on Sat., Sept. 9, 2023, with a 185-pound world title fight inside Qudos Bank Arena. In the ESPN+-streamed pay-per-view (PPV) main event, Middleweight roost-ruler, Israel Adesanya, plans to silence No. 5-seeded contender, Sean Strickland. In UFC 293’s hard-hitting Heavyweight co-main event, No-6-ranked fan favorite, Tai Tuivasa, locks horns with towering Russian, Alexander Volkov (No. 8).

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“I definitely just want to submit a couple of people,” Adesanya told TSN (transcribed by Farah Hannoun). “I’ve done the ‘Fight of the Night’ bullsh*t, it’s not for me. I like clean executions. I’ve had great performances, I’ve had shut-outs, I’ve had a loss, I’ve had a comeback — great comebacks. I think (I want to) showcase my grappling a little bit more, and just take some limbs, take some breaths away.”

Adesanya, who transitioned to cage fighting after a successful kickboxing career, has 24 victories in MMA, 16 by knockout and eight by decision. Tapping Strickland — who has yet to be submitted in 32 professional fights — would no doubt cement his status as a complete mixed martial artist.

“What do I want in my career? Submission, I definitely want a submission,” Adesanya continued. “It might be this fight. I know he’s going to wrestle. He’d be dumb not to. I know he’s going to try and mix it up. He’s doing this whole thing: ‘Man dance … man dance.’ He’s going to crotch sniff. That’s what he’s going to do. He’s got smart coaches and they will definitely beat it into him. I know they’ve been talking about it and he’s like, ‘What? Crotch sniff? I’m going to box.’ You really think he’s going to box with me?”

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 293 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard on ESPNN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 293: “Adesanya vs. Strickalnd” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.