Israel Adesanya has beaten seven of the top 11 fighters in the UFC’s middleweight rankings, including multiple wins over two of them.
The 33-year-old New Zealander became the first two-time middleweight champion in UFC history with his second-round knockout win over Alex Pereira at UFC 287 in Miami — a performance that Former middleweight contender Chael Sonnen said cemented Adesanya as the greatest middleweight in UFC history.
“Yes, I believe that he is (the greatest middleweight of all time),” Sonnen said during an appearance on the “MMA Hour.”
Adesanya, who’s 13-2 in the UFC, avenged his UFC 281 TKO loss to Pereira — the only fighter to knock him out, which he did both in the UFC and in kickboxing.
