UFC 248: Israel Adesanya vs Joel Romero
Israel Adesanya v. Joel Romero for the UFC Middleweight Championship
UFC 248 T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, March 7, 2020
There is a lot of hype surrounding the main event at UFC 248 at the T-Mobile Arena. And deservedly so. The UFC 185 pound middleweight title is on the line. The battle will take place in the fight capital of the world, Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, March 7, 2020.
Israel Adesanya will be defending his crown for really the first time since unifying the UFC middleweight championship. He knocked out the former champion, Robert Whittaker, in the second round at UFC 243. That fight took place in Melbourne, Australia, in October 2019.
Joel Romero will be challenging for the title, if he makes weight. The forty-two-year-old Cuban national will also be looking to make history. He stands to be the oldest UFC champion since Randy Couture. Couture won a decision victory over Tim Sylvia at UFC 68 to capture the UFC heavyweight title at the age of 45.
Well-deserved hype
The hype surrounding the middleweight title fight at UFC 248 is so well deserved because both the champion and the challenger are such exciting fighters.
The Last Stylebender, Adesanya, has at times looked like the next coming of UFC Hall of Famer, and all-time great, Anderson the Spider Silva. Who could forget that Adesayna actually challenged Silva and fought him to a three-round decision victory at UFC 234. That fight between Adesayna and Silva garnered fight of the night award. It should be noted, however, that the young Stylebender couldn’t get the old man out of there.
The soldier of God, Romero, has looked at all times like a world-beater. His stature and physique make him look like he has just stepped off the pages of a superhero comic book, or the latest CGI movie. Not only is he shredded, but he is enormous. He is so big that it seems impossible that he is fighting in the middleweight division.
Adesanya, on the other hand, at 6′ 4″ is long and lean, but he uses his length to his advantage. He employs a creative stand up striking skill set that leaves even the most cynical fan in awe of his abilities. His striking is fluid and fast, just as it is precise and technical.
Common opponents
Adesanya and Romero have a few common opponents on their resume. Both fighters have fought Brad Tavares to unanimous decision victories, and both have knocked out Derek Brunson. However, Adesanya leveled Brunson in the first round, and Romero starched him in the third.
Of course, both Adesanya and Romero have fought the former middleweight champ Robert Whittaker. Romero has shared the octagon with Whitaker for a total of 10 complete rounds, losing both battles via decision. If you didn’t think Robert Whittaker was tough before he outlasted Romero for ten full rounds, you definitely found yourself analyzing what it is about him that makes him different after those victories. Meanwhile, Adesanya straight knocked him out in under two rounds with clean, technical, precision striking.
Brash call out
Finally, the hype around this fight is due to the fact that Adesanya had the courage to call out Romero. In a world where no one on the planet wants to fight against Joel Romero, the champ is taking a big risk by agreeing to meet the violent Cuban monster in the center the octagon. There are two ways to look at Adesanya’s bold call out of the Cuban beast: he is either brave and confident – as befits a champion – or he is brash and careless, and has bitten off more than he can chew.
Odds
As of the time of this post, Adesanya is strongly favored in the fight at -265. At + 245 Romero has never been a bigger underdog in his entire career.
The over/under for this 25-minute title fight has been set at 3.5 rounds. The Over prop holds the favored role, clocking in at -127. The Under is an underdog option at +112. Still, the oddsmakers are projecting this middleweight championship matchup to end early. The exotic bet ‘Fight doesn’t go to decision’ can be acquired at a favored moneyline of -150, with a +120 comeback on ‘Fight goes to decision.’
Prediction
While Adesanya looked incredible knocking out Whittaker with precision striking in the second round – something that Romero couldn’t do over 10 full rounds – I think Joel Romero is just too much man to handle for the Last Stylebender. Seriously, you don’t even have to paint him green – he still looks bigger and badder than the incredible hulk.
Romero’s size, strength, and experience as an Olympic champion wrestler, and, not to mention a long line of boxing DNA in his family, will prove too much for the Champ to withstand. I predict that Romero will push Adesanya up against the cage and stop him with a barrage of punches in the second round. It will be a TKO victory for the Soldier of God, and he will be taking the belt with him back to Cuba.
And new
At the end of the night there will be a new UFC Middleweight Champion, and he will soon be approaching 43 years of age. Score another one for the old guys.
If you are enjoying our coverage of the fights, don’t forget to check back in for more news and updates. See our prediction for the Co-Main Event at UFC 248 Zhang Weili vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Also don’t forget to check out our other posts on Jiu-Jitsu and MMA. Enjoy the fights!
