The UFC has returned to “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi for a pay per view headlined by two undefeated juggernauts in Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa.
The UFC has returned to “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi for a pay per view headlined by two undefeated juggernauts in Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa.
Adesanya (19-0) defends his Middleweight Championship against Costa (13-0) in the main event. Both fighters enter the bout with undefeated records, and this matchup is one of the best that the UFC can offer in any weight class. Costa has simply powered his way through the UFC, winning his first four fights in the promotion by TKO before his most recent fight, which was a five-round unanimous decision against Yoel Romero. Costa dominated Romero, one of the most dangerous middleweight fighters in the world. But Adesanya will also cause problems for Costa, and this fight appears destined to go the distance. The key for Adesanya will be keeping Costa in range for his vicious array of kicks. This has the potential to be one of the top fights of the year.
UFC 253 is carried by its title fights. The co-main event pits Dominick Reyes against Jan Blachowicz for the vacant Light Heavyweight Championship. Reyes (12-1) appeared to have won the title against Jon Jones in their fight last February, but the judges scored the fight in favor of Jones. Though Reyes lost his undefeated streak, he returns to the Octagon for a second chance at the title. Standing in his way is Blachowicz (26-8), an extremely skilled boxer that will be seeking a knockout blow. But Reyes can stand and bang as well as control opponents on the mat, and UFC 253 should be the beginning of a very long reign for him atop the light heavyweight division.
The rest of the card offers some pop, particularly in the women’s bantamweight fight featuring Ketlen Vieira against Sijara Eubanks. With a win, Vieira (10-1) will be on track for a fight against the dominant Amanda Nunes, who is the reigning Women’s Bantamweight Champion. For Eubanks (6-4), a win would elevate her into the top ten of the division, but this is a fight that should belong to Vieira. Also on the card is a flyweight fight pitting Kai Kara-France (21-8, 1 NC) against Brandon Royval (11-4), an entertaining bout that should favor Kara-France, as well as a catchweight bout between Hakeem Dawodu (11-1-1) and Zubaira Tukhugov (19-4-1), who failed to make weight for this to be a featherweight fight.
There is some depth to the card, but the focal point is the co-main event. A new Light Heavyweight Champion will be crowned, and Costa looks to dethrone Adesanya in the UFC 253 marquee.
