Israel Adesanya, born on July 22, 1989, is a Nigerian and New Zealander professional martial artist, kickboxer, and former boxer. Adesanya competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a former two-time middleweight champion of the promotion. He resides in Auckland, New Zealand, and trains in wrestling under Romanian-New Zealander Andrei Păulet. He receives coaching from Eugene Bareman.
He made his Glory debut at GLORY 15 against Felip Verlinden, with Adesanya losing the fight via unanimous decision. Israel Adesanya’s last kickboxing fight was a rematch against Alex Pereira before he switched to martial arts. He lost the fight via knockout and finally made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2012 with a TKO victory over James Griffiths. During his initial stint, he amassed a perfect record of 8-0, fighting mainly in the Oceanian and Chinese circuits. In December 2017, Adesanya signed a contract with the UFC and debuted at UFC 221 in February 2018 against Rob Wilkinson, beating him by a second-round TKO.
Israel Adesanya's weight class
Israel Adesanya competes in the middleweight division of the UFC, where the weight limit is 185 lbs., or 84 kg. Israel Adesanya has been a leading fighter in the UFC’s middleweight division for the past several years. He is ranked as the No.2 contender in the division, as of January 28. 2025.
Israel Adesanya’s MMA record
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location |
| Loss | 24-4 | Nassourdine Imavov | Submission | UFC 305 | August 18, 2024 | 4 | 3:38 | Perth, Australia |
| Loss | 24-3 | Sean Strickland | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 293 | September 10, 2023 | 5 | 5:00 | Sydney, Australia |
| Win | 24-2 | Alex Pereira | KO/TKO | UFC 287 | October 9, 2023 | 2 | 4:21 | Miami, Florida, United States |
| Loss | 23-2 | Alex Pereira | KO/TKO | UFC 281 | November 13, 2022 | 5 | 2:01 | MSG, New York City, New York |
| Win | 23-1 | Jared Cannonier | Unanimous decision | UFC 276 | July 3, 2022 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Win | 22-1 | Robert Whittaker | Unanimous decision | UFC 271 | February 13, 2022, | 5 | 5:00 | Houston, Texas, United States |
| Win | 21-1 | Marvin Vettori | Unanimous decision | UFC 263 | June 13, 2021 | 5 | 5:00 | Glendale, Arizona, United States |
| Loss | 20-1 | Jan Blachowicz | Unanimous decision | UFC 259 | May 7, 2021 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Win | 20-0 | Paulo Costa | KO/TKO | UFC 253 | September 27, 2021 | 2 | 3:59 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
| Win | 19-0 | Yoel Romero | Unanimous decision | UFC 248 | March 8, 2020 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S |
| Win | 18-0 | Robert Whittaker | KO/TKO | UFC 243 | October 6,, 2019 | 2 | 3:33 | Melbourne, Australia |
| Win | 17-0 | Kelvin Gastelum | Unanimous decision | UFC 236 | April 14, 2019 | 5 | 5:00 | Atlanta Georgia, United States |
| Win | 16-0 | Anderson Silva | Unanimous decision | UFC 234 | February 10, 2019 | 5 | 5:00 | Melbourne, Australia |
| Win | 15-0 | Derek Brunson | KO/TKO | UFC 230 | November 4, 2018 | 1 | 4:51 | MSG, New York City, New York, United States |
| Win | 14-0 | Brad Tavares | Unanimous decision | The Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale | July 7, 2018 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Palms Casino Resort, United States |
| Win | 13-0 | Marvin Vettori | Split decision | UFC Fight Night: Poirier vs. Gaethje | April 15,, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Glendale, Arizona, United States |
| Win | 12-0 | Robert Wilkinson | KO/TKO | UFC 221 | February 11, 2018 | 2 | 3:37 | Perth, Australia |
| Win | 11-0 | Stuart Dare | KO (Head Kick) | HFS: Hex Fight Series 12 | November 24, 2017 | 1 | 4:53 | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Win | 10-0 | Melvin Guilard | TKO (punches) | AFC 20: Australian Fighting Championship 20 | July 28, 2017 | 1 | 4:49 | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Win | 9-0 | Murad Kuramagomedov | TKO (punches) | WLF: E.P.I.C Elevation Power in Cage 4 | May 28, 2016 | 2 | 1:05 | Zhengzhou, Henan, China |
| Win | 8-0 | Andrew Flores Smith | TKO (corner stoppage) | Wu Lin Feng: Glory of Heroes 2 | May 7, 2016 | 1 | 5:00 | Shenzhen, China |
| Win | 7-0 | Dibir Zagirov | TKO (punches) | WLF: E.P.I.C: 2 | March 13, 2016 | 2 | 2:23 | Zhenghzou, China |
| Win | 6-0 | Vladimir Katykhin | TKO (doctor stoppage) | WLF: E.P.I.C: 1: Elevation Power in Cage 1 | January 13, 2016 | 2 | - | Zhengzhou, Henan, China |
| Win | 5-0 | Gele King | TKO | WLF: New Zealand vs. China | September 19, 2015 | 2 | 3:37 | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Win | 4-0 | Maui Tuigamala | KO | FPF:Fair Pay Fighting 1 | September 5, 2015 | 2 | 1:25 | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Win | 3-0 | Song Kenan | TKO (head kick) | WFC: The Legend of Emei 3 | August 8, 2015 | 1 | 1:59 | Shahe, China |
| Win | 2-0 | John Vake | TKO (punches) | Shuriken MMA: Best of the Best | June 15, 2013 | 1 | 4:43 | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Win | 1-0 | James Griffiths | TKO (punches) | SFC 9: Supremacy Fighting Championship 9 | March 24, 2012 | 1 | 2:09 | Auckland, New Zealand |
Read More About: What is Israel Adesanya's fight record?
*Last updated on January 28, 2025.
FAQs On Israel Adesanya
A. Israel Adesanya competes in the middleweight division of the UFC.
A. No, Israel Adesanya is a former middleweight champion of the UFC.
A. Israel Adesanya weighs 185.18 lbs.
A. Israel Adesanya is 6 feet 3 inches (1.93 m) tall.
A. Yes, Israel Adesanya defeated Alex Pereira at UFC 287 to reclaim the UFC middleweight title.
