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Israel Adesanya's ascent in the UFC has been meteoric; he has firmly established himself as one of the greatest fighters to ever grace the octagon.
'The Last Stylebender' embodies a distinct breed of fighter, characterized not only by his charm, candor, and appeal to audiences but chiefly by his prowess in the cage.
As a former UFC middleweight champion, he stands among the division's elite. With a plethora of knockout victories amassed over his illustrious combat sports career, some may wonder whether the Nigerian-born Kiwi has ever clinched a win via submission.
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Has Israel Adesanya ever won by submission? Exploring the UFC star's grappling prowess
Israel Adesanya flaunts a professional MMA record of 24-3, with 16 victories achieved by knockout or technical knockout throughout his career. Interestingly, 'The Last Stylebender' has yet to secure a single win or loss via submission.
Despite boasting a takedown defense rate of 77%, which ranks him among the top echelon in the promotion, the former UFC middleweight champion notably avoids taking fights to the ground and engaging in grappling exchanges. This is reflected in his average takedown statistics, with only 0.05 takedowns landed per 15 minutes of fighting.
Adesanya's offensive wrestling is virtually non-existent, with only one takedown scored throughout his UFC career. Consequently, his rate of submission attempts per 15 minutes stands at a mere 0.1.
Though this doesn't necessarily imply that 'The Last Stylebender' has refrained from attempting submissions in his octagon career. During his interim title fight against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 236 in April 2019, he made multiple attempts.
However, both fighters proved elusive, with Gastelum successfully evading them. Adesanya later disclosed that he had set up a D’Arce choke during the bout but opted to transition to his opponent's back and deliver punches instead.
When Israel Adesanya voiced his desire for submission win against Sean Strickland at UFC 293
During an interview with TSN Sports ahead of his middleweight title defense against Sean Strickland at UFC 293 last September, Israel Adesanya expressed his quest for a milestone in his MMA journey—an elusive submission victory:
"I definitely want a submission. It might be this fight. I know he’s going to wrestle. He’d be dumb not to, so I know he’s going to mix it up. He’s going to crotch sniff; that’s what he’s going to do."
He added:
"I definitely just want to submit a couple of people. 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 shutouts, 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."
Check out Israel Adesanya's comments below (4:27):
However, despite Adesanya's claims, he faltered in defending his title, leading to one of the most significant upsets in recent UFC history. Strickland outperformed him throughout five rounds, ultimately securing a unanimous decision victory.
