S. Strickland receives belt from D. White at UFC 293 (Photo: Twitter/@ufcfightpassbr)
The victory of Sean Strickland about Israel adesanya No. UFC 293 it opened up an unprecedented and vast scenario of possibilities that had not been seen for many years in the middleweight division (up to 83,9kg). Regardless of whether or not an immediate rematch is granted to the Nigerian, the next rounds of the category that was once led by Anderson Silva promises great confrontations and high emotions.
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In case of Strickland x Adesanya 2
At the press conference after the UFC 293Dana White said he would like to listen to Israel Adesanya and try to understand what happened and the reasons for the Nigerian's apathetic performance before Strickland. However, the president of Ultimate made it clear that he welcomes a rematch between the two fighters and that he will work to make it happen.
If the rematch is confirmed, Paulo borrachinha e Khamzat Shimaev now have the probable title eliminator threatened. The two fighters face each other in UFC 294, scheduled for October 21st, and the winner may be forced to do one more round before fighting for the belt. There is not even a date planned for the possible new duel between Strickland and Adesanya.
Initially scheduled to face Israel adesanya No. UFC 293, Dricus Du Plessis, became a mystery to the organization. During the week of the event, Dana White did not hide his dissatisfaction with the South African's refusal to fight the then champion and did not guarantee that he would be next in line for the belt. The middleweight prospect also did not disclose details of his injury or the time he would need to be out, which made the company even more uncomfortable with his attitude.
Numbers two and three in the ranking, Robert whittaker e Jared Cannonier can enter the 'zone of confusion' and benefit from the new reign in the category. With the uncertainty of Dricus Du Plessis, both fighters, especially Cannonier who is coming off two consecutive victories, could face the winner of Borrachinha x Chimaev or even face off in a rematch, in the event of a likely delay in the imbroglio between Strickland and Adesanya.
If there is no rematch between Strickland and Adesanya
P. Borrachinha (left) and K. Chimaev (right) face each other in the UFC 294. Photo: SUPER FIGHTS montage
If there is no immediate rematch between Sean Strickland e Israel adesanya, the scenario should not deviate from what everyone already expected before the UFC 293. The winner of the expected clash between Paulo borrachinha e Khamzat Shimaev, who will face each other on October 21st, in Abu Dhabi (UAE), will be the next challenger in the category and could face the always active Strickland in the first months of 2024.
Without the burden of fighting for a title for the first time since February 2019, Adesanya will be able to focus on putting his house in order and preparing for the 'reckoning' with the South African Dricus Du Plessis, with whom he has even exchanged provocations in the octagon after his rival's victory. The winner of the clash would fight for the belt with whoever triumphs in the Strickland x Borrachinha/Chimaev clash.
In this scenario, top-5 members Whittaker and Cannonier will have to accept 'high risk, low reward' duels. Both will have to face an athlete outside of the division's elite to avoid the risk of being removed from a new title fight.
The category will also continue to move between ranked and prospects, Brendan allen (#10) will face Paul Craig (#13) on November 18th and the Georgian Roman Dolidze (#8) will measure forces against Derek Brunson (#7) almost a month later, in UFC 295.
After a limbo caused by Adesanya's long reign, the division's scenario promises to heat up in the coming months. Let's wait for the next chapters.
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