Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest MMA Strikers

2. Israel Adesanya

The longtime UFC middleweight champion finishes runner-up on this list, adding to his second place on Sherdog's list of the greatest middleweights. There is also an amusing parallel to the list of top 10 grapplers from last week. On that list, Demian Maia finished second despite receiving no first-place votes, unlike several fighters behind him. Similarly, Adesanya finishes second here despite not coming in first on any individual ballot. I have a huge appreciation for Adesanya's unique style and brilliant mind for fighting. While previous entry Jon Jones may have introduced the style, Adesanya truly perfected the art of picking off opponents from range. His kicks are outstanding and unpredictable, being delivered with speed and power to any part of the opponent's body. His jab is like a snake, connecting instantly with an opponent's head, and a fantastic setup for further blows. And unlike Jones, Adesanya is comfortable boxing in the pocket, able to use his fantastic reactions to avoid blows and counter with power and accuracy. For a while, Adesanya's style appeared unbeatable. He thoroughly out-classed Brad Tavares over five rounds, won one of the greatest fights ever against a very inspired Kelvin Gastelum, delivered a sensational second-round knockout of Robert Whittaker to become undisputed UFC middleweight champion, knocked out bitter rival Paulo Costa to hand him his first loss, and delivered five-round drubbings of Jared Cannonier and Marvin Vettori in their rematch.

As with Lyoto Machida earlier in his list, other fighters eventually began to figured Adesanya out, though his style has yet to be completely defeated. All-time great striker Yoel Romero fought Adesanya on very close terms and in most observer's eyes, mine included, won the fight three rounds to two, Jan Blachowicz fought an incredible fight to hand Adesanya his first loss, Whittaker fared considerably better in their rematch, a razor-thin verdict that could have gone either man's way, and of course, Alex Pereira knocked out Adesanya in Round 5 of a fight he had been losing. The same as with Aldo, I don't believe that consistently facing the greatest fighters and occasionally faltering should be judged negatively, especially as Adesanya is likely a little past his prime now, at 33 years old. Without a doubt, he is an all-time great kickboxer who evolved MMA striking at the highest levels.

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