MadLab MMA is offering a daily pass for UFC 259 on March 6 for only $19.99. You’ll get the following for this loaded card:
Here’s the MadLab breakdown video for the main event, which is the light heavyweight title matchup between champion Jan Blachowicz and middleweight champion Israel Adesanya:
Adesanya vs Blachowicz
When you talk about athletes being ahead of their time, it is hard not to mention Israel Adesanya’s name. He possesses a fundamentally sound striking pedigree, cerebral approach and strong athletic ability all which work together to support a deep and detail-oriented mindset.
Without question, “Izzy” has a certain “it” factor about him. He downloads information very quickly, processes it, creates a blueprint and very rarely makes mistakes. The most impressive thing about him is his internal belief system and confidence in his skill set. It is easy to get in front of the cameras and talk about how great you are, but it is another thing to never turn down a fight and actively seek the hardest fights in the division.
This brings us to Jan Blachowicz.
Adesanya will now test himself once again, bumping up to light heavyweight to take on the true meaning of Polish power, a surging fighter who has been laying in the shadows waiting his turn.
After winning three straight fights, the UFC decided to let Blachowicz take a crack at UFC gold against Dominick Reyes at UFC 253 in September, and he did nothing short of seizing that moment perfectly.
The hard-hitting Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt will now look to take the decorated sniper, Adesanya, on a deep dive to a place that he hasn’t been before, in the hopes that he can’t swim. Adesanya will have his bead on other things, as well, like becoming a two-division champion.
Will the current Polish champion bring his belt back to his native country with him, or will the new breed prove that speed, precision and a high level of cage IQ trump everything?
One having an unblemished record looking to gain double-champ stature and the other looking to derail a train that has not yet been detoured, while keeping his spot on the throne.
Adesanya
Adesanya brings a very rare dynamic to the table. With 20 MMA fights and 80 kickboxing matches on his resume, he believes that his power comes from precision and speed. He knows that he wasn’t blessed with God-given power, but the belief system of drawing you into his power will make up for the lack thereof.
The reigning middleweight champion looks at fighting like a video game. He will create scenarios and toss puzzle pieces all over the cage, waiting for you to pick them up and try to make sense of it all. Once you are stumped, he counters, letting you know that you have just been baited.
Adesanya’s ability to make reads and avoid damage is incredible. Fighters with his skill set, matched with his awareness and intelligence, won’t, and don’t, come around too often.
With a flawless MMA record of 20-0, Adesanya has dismantled everyone in his path, which has not been cherry-picked, as he has made it clear that he is going after the challenges in the division and not showing interest in fights with fully expected outcomes.
Everyone that Izzy faces is a new test in some area for him, and herein lies his biggest test to date. Can he come up from middleweight to light heavyweight and prove that his speed and precision are still too much for fighters with more size and power? With 15 knockout/TKO victories among his 20 in MMA, It is quite obvious that Izzy has the power, and as a 6-foot-4 middleweight, there is no doubt that he can carry the 205-pound frame.
The question is, will the speed carry over, and will the power translate north into the new division?
There really isn’t a concern there for me about either, to be honest. I think it all translates over in the right places just fine. My biggest concern is the ability to take big shots from someone in the 205-pound division. Also, how will he fare in the clinch and grappling exchanges with a stronger combatant? I think he passes more than he fails these tests, but this is much more of an unknown theater for him in many aspects against a guy that is ready and willing to test your new home in every room.
Blachowicz
Blachowicz has been grossly underappreciated in his career — always respected, but never given the true shine that he deserves, until now.
With a record of 27-8 (eight wins by KO and nine by way of submission), Jan is no longer a fighter in the shadows. After impressively defeating Reyes via TKO for the vacant light heavyweight strap, he will now look to spring himself into superstardom by defeating one of the UFC’s biggest riddles.
A win over Adesanya would propel Blachowicz into a new stratosphere. He understands that standing in range with Izzy for 25 minutes would most likely be a death sentence. Jan’s best path to victory would be to test his opponent’s chin early, but keep him guessing with grappling. Securing an early takedown can be extremely important in this fight for his confidence and to keep Izzy honest.
We have seen Izzy go five rounds easily, but Blachowicz has been there only once, against Jacare Souza in a split-decision win. In that fight, Jan looked a little fatigued down the stretch and against a guy that is not going to let him stay comfortable in there, things can only get worse if his conditioning isn’t on par.
Blachowicz is historically durable, having only been submitted once and finished twice in his career. Finishing the Polish power will be no easy task.
How I See This Shaking Out:
Until Adesanya shows me that he has a gaping hole in his game, I won’t be picking against him. I respect Jan and think that he is a fantastic fighter with a good and clear understanding of what works and what doesn’t against his opposition at the time.
However, understanding that and being able to actually implement it are two different things. I think Jan is definitely live as an underdog, but speed is going to kill here. I think Blachowicz has his spots and if he can get this to the ground, we may see an upset. But the speed of Izzy, the angle manipulations, traps and diversity in striking will be the biggest visual in this fight.
Blachowicz will start to become frustrated as Adesanya starts to turn on the gas as the rounds go on. The last thing you want is for Izzy to get into a tempo with his striking. Once he starts to “drum kit” patterns, you are in for a long night.
The Polish champion is going to need to make this a dirty fight. Get in close, take away his ability to move and circle away. Make him fight with you or make him fight his way out of situations.
I am just not sold that Jan can do this for 25 long minutes. He doesn’t have the speed or the athletic ability to keep up with someone as versed as Izzy on the feet, so the ground is really where he wants this to end up at some point. The question is whether he can get it there and keep it there. Izzy has a very underrated takedown defense and although he can be taken down, he tends not to stay there for long.
I have major respect for Jan as a fighter, but this fight just seems like a bad matchup for him. You will see a clear speed and accuracy discrepancy in the favor of Izzy and I think that will be enough to win this one. Izzy gets into a tempo early enough to show the world a masterclass performance that will allow him to hoist yet another belt and keep his record flawless still.
The Pick: Adesanya
DFS
Adesanya, $9,200
- 100+ Points: 5 of 10
- Streak: Undefeated
- Finishes: 4 of 10
- Physical Advantages: 2 inch reach / Switch Fighter
- Avg FP: 89
- Hedge: 7
One of the most cerebral fighters I have seen in almost a decade, Adesanya has pushed the envelope in what can be done and added to an already stellar striking pedigree. He’s notoriously not the quickest starter, and that is on purpose. Izzy will download everything and gradually catch his wheels to see what gear he can lose you in. Once he catches traction, you are most likely getting lost in translation. With 50% of his fights breaking the 100-point barrier, Izzy is in play and has high upside in a fight that he can run away with if he can keep the fight off the canvas.
Blachowicz $7,000 (champion)
-
- 100+ Points: 1 of 10
- Streak: 4 fight Win Streak
- Finishes: 5 of 10
- Physical Advantages: weight
- Avg FP: 69.6
- Hedge: 3
There is a part of me that loves Blachowicz, but the realization to me is that he has overachieved a bit. Now that he is the champion, they are riding this “Polish Power” thing. He does have natural light heavyweight power, but let’s slow down with the “Polish Power” thing. He knocked out Luke Rockhold, who has been finished in three of his last four fights, Corey Anderson, who is good but is chinny, and Reyes, who we really never saw checked like that.
So the sample size of his power is rearing its head from his last three finishes. His path here should be his grappling and close proximity fighting. Take the range away from Adesanya and look to test him with your black belt, or unload a barrage of elbows and strikes when you have Izzy cornered.
If an undersized middleweight like Kelvin Gastelum can put Adesanya on skates, a very well-sized light heavyweight can do that and possibly finish the job. The paths are there for him, but you can’t hit what you can’t catch and if Izzy gets loose, Jan can be in trouble in this one.
Vegas: Possible parlay piece
Pictured above: Jan Blachowicz and Israel Adesanya
Credit: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
