MMA SQUARED: Israel Adesanya is on the cusp of greatness: An illustrated timeline of his UFC tenure

From the moment he first walked into the octagon and mimed urinating all over it, Israel Adesanya has been performing under a microscope. Even before he was in the UFC, Israel Adesanya had a level of swagger rarely seen under the bright li…

From the moment he first walked into the octagon and mimed urinating all over it, Israel Adesanya has been performing under a microscope.

Even before he was in the UFC, Israel Adesanya had a level of swagger rarely seen under the bright lights.


His first moment in the octagon was a display of ownership.


Striking showcases against unranked opponents allowed him to work on his takedown defense.


And with each opponent of increasing difficulty…


… he rose to the occasion.


His performance against Derek Brunson solidified him as the breakout star of 2018 as he went 4-0 with two finishes.


2019 started off with a torch passing matchup against Anderson Silva. The fight was decent, but not hot fire.


Then opportunity knocked. The champ, Robert Whittaker dropped out of his fight with Kelvin Gastelum.


What followed was one of the best fights of the year. The drama of going into the fifth round with the score tied, and Adesanya’s domination… the final eight minutes are straight up cinematic.

Work in progress.

I’m pretty psyched for this main event. It’s impossible for me to pick and I’ll be sad for whoever loses, happy for whoever wins.

By the way, on twitter and instagram I’ll be posting art from my book The Fine Art of Violence as part of #Inktober.

Take care of yourself and I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

Chris