Jan Blachowicz was questioned at every step in his rise to become the light heavyweight champion, and continued ahead of his first title defense on Saturday. But, once again, Blachowicz defied the odds and retained the title in the UFC 259 main event with a victory over middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in Adesanya’s attempt to become the two-division champion.
Blachowicz and Adesanya struggled tense in the first three rounds, with the two looking to minimize errors and make the other pay. It was in the championship rounds that Blachowicz showed his good faith in the championship, finally using his size and strength advantage to overthrow Adesanya and grind with ground and pound.
Stacking the points in these big final rounds allowed Blachowicz to move away on the scoreboard, winning the victory by 49-46, 49-45 and 49-45.
“I thought he would be a little faster, but he didn’t hit that hard,” said Blachowicz after his victory. “He was slower, but he hit harder, that was something I didn’t expect. I should do my left hand a little bit more, I should give more jabs, put more pressure on him. But the game plan is one, and fighting is the second, a different thing. “
What’s next for the champion? Blachowicz believes the next opponent will be veteran light heavyweight Glover Teixeira.
“I think that [Teixeira] deserves, “said Blachowicz.” He’s going to have to wait a while, so I can rest and be with my family. But he will wait, he will be next. “
CBS Sports was with you all Saturday bringing all the results and highlights from UFC 259 below.
UFC 259 Card and Results
- Jan Blachowicz (c) def. Israel Adesanya by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-45, 49-45)
- Amanda Nunes (c) won. Megan Anderson via submission in the first round (armbar)
- Aljamain Sterling (c) def. Petr Yan via DQ in the fourth round (illegal knee)
- Islam Makhachev def. Drew Dober by submission in round three (arm triangle)
- Aleksandar Rakic won. Thiago Santos by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Dominick Cruz won. Casey Kenney by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
- Kyler Phillips won. Song Yadong by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Askar Askarov def. Joseph Benavidez by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
- Kai Kara-France won. Rogério Bontorin by technical knockout in the first round (punch)