07-09-2018, 01:07 PM
UFC president Dana White expects 'big things' from Israel Adesanya following win over Brad Tavares
Israel Adesanya extended his record to 14-0 with a dominant win over Brad Tavares.
If there is one person in the UFC you want on your side it's president Dana White and Kiwi Israel Adesanya has clearly won him over.
Adesanya has been tipped to move into the top-10 of the middleweight division after destroying No 8-contender Brad Tavares over the weekend and White said he expects "big things" from 'The Last Stylebender'.
The praise did not stop there, though, as the UFC boss went on to compare Adesanya to two of the greatest fighters to step into the octagon.
UFC president Dana White has high hopes for Israel Adesanya in the middleweight division.
"His head movement, his striking, the way he moves, everything. He reminds me of a cross between Anderson Silva and Jon Jones the way this guy fights," White said at his post-fight press conference at UFC 226.
"It's his first fight breaking into the top 10 and now we'll get him another fight that will help build him."
When it comes to mixed martial arts they don't get much better than Silva and Jones.
Silva enjoyed the longest title reign in UFC history when he held the middleweight belt from 2006 to 2013.
Jones' reputation has taken a hit in recent years after several controversies, including a doping violation from last year's bout against Daniel Cormier that saw him stripped of the light-heavyweight title.
But prior to that, Jones, the youngest champion in the UFC, was regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world for a number of years and few would question his ability inside the octagon.
Comparisons to Jones' creative fighting style are not new for Adesanya and he has been quick to play them down.
Still, it's nice to come from the guy that writes the cheques and is an indication of just how far White believes the former kickboxer can go.
Saturday's lop-sided unanimous decision win over Tavares in Las Vegas was Adesanya's third-straight since making his UFC debut in February to extend his record to 14-0.
Tavares was expected to be a big step up from his two previous opponents but the result was never in doubt as the Nigerian-born star put on a striking masterclass and defended 11 of the Hawaiian veteran's 12 takedown attempts.
"The kid looks great. I wanted to see how he could defend Brad Tavares' takedowns and he did a great job. And obviously his striking is phenomenal," White said.
"[He] looked good for five rounds, looked strong, never really got tired. So I expect big things from that kid."
Following the result, Adesanya said he wanted to meet the winner of the UFC 226 bout between Uriah Hall and Paulo Costa, which the latter won via second-round TKO.
Costa, who improved to 12-0 and 4-0 in the UFC, is on a similar trajectory to Adesanya and White believes he is well on the way to being the next big Brazilian star.
But it appears he has different plans for both fighters in the near future.
"That's awesome. I like that he wants that fight," White said. "It's probably not the fight that's going to happen but I like that he wants it."
Israel Adesanya extended his record to 14-0 with a dominant win over Brad Tavares.
If there is one person in the UFC you want on your side it's president Dana White and Kiwi Israel Adesanya has clearly won him over.
Adesanya has been tipped to move into the top-10 of the middleweight division after destroying No 8-contender Brad Tavares over the weekend and White said he expects "big things" from 'The Last Stylebender'.
The praise did not stop there, though, as the UFC boss went on to compare Adesanya to two of the greatest fighters to step into the octagon.
UFC president Dana White has high hopes for Israel Adesanya in the middleweight division.
"His head movement, his striking, the way he moves, everything. He reminds me of a cross between Anderson Silva and Jon Jones the way this guy fights," White said at his post-fight press conference at UFC 226.
"It's his first fight breaking into the top 10 and now we'll get him another fight that will help build him."
When it comes to mixed martial arts they don't get much better than Silva and Jones.
Silva enjoyed the longest title reign in UFC history when he held the middleweight belt from 2006 to 2013.
Jones' reputation has taken a hit in recent years after several controversies, including a doping violation from last year's bout against Daniel Cormier that saw him stripped of the light-heavyweight title.
But prior to that, Jones, the youngest champion in the UFC, was regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world for a number of years and few would question his ability inside the octagon.
Comparisons to Jones' creative fighting style are not new for Adesanya and he has been quick to play them down.
Still, it's nice to come from the guy that writes the cheques and is an indication of just how far White believes the former kickboxer can go.
Saturday's lop-sided unanimous decision win over Tavares in Las Vegas was Adesanya's third-straight since making his UFC debut in February to extend his record to 14-0.
Tavares was expected to be a big step up from his two previous opponents but the result was never in doubt as the Nigerian-born star put on a striking masterclass and defended 11 of the Hawaiian veteran's 12 takedown attempts.
"The kid looks great. I wanted to see how he could defend Brad Tavares' takedowns and he did a great job. And obviously his striking is phenomenal," White said.
"[He] looked good for five rounds, looked strong, never really got tired. So I expect big things from that kid."
Following the result, Adesanya said he wanted to meet the winner of the UFC 226 bout between Uriah Hall and Paulo Costa, which the latter won via second-round TKO.
Costa, who improved to 12-0 and 4-0 in the UFC, is on a similar trajectory to Adesanya and White believes he is well on the way to being the next big Brazilian star.
But it appears he has different plans for both fighters in the near future.
"That's awesome. I like that he wants that fight," White said. "It's probably not the fight that's going to happen but I like that he wants it."