Watch UFC 293 Adesanya vs Strickland 9/9/23 – 9th September 2023 Livestream Full Show Online Free HD:

UFC 293 betting preview: Does Adesanya face worthy challenger in Strickland?

UFC 293 takes place at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia this weekend with Israel Adesanya looking to defend his middleweight title against Sean Strickland.

While the card lacks any matchups with title implications beyond the main event, it does feature plenty of local talent from Australia and New Zealand, so the crowd should be a lively one.

Adesanya recaptured middleweight gold with an emphatic knockout over Alex Pereira at UFC 287 in April. He’ll look to defend the 185-pound championship successfully for the sixth time overall on Saturday in his 11th consecutive main event.

Strickland enters his fourth straight main event and sixth in his last seven fights. He’s effective in the championship rounds, with excellent cardio and output, and the relatively short-notice booking shouldn’t impact his abilities.

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Adesanya violently took back the 185-pound throne from his bitter rival, Alex Pereira, knocking him out at UFC 287 (see it again here). In doing so, he earned his first combat win over “Poatan” in four tries. But, another thing he did was come closer to completely cleaning out the 185-pound division. He has already defeated most of the Top 10 (some of them twice) so new challenges are rare. Driccus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland are a couple of the only fresh and intriguing matchups who await “The Last Stylebender,” but if and when he gets through them, there really isn’t a whole lot out there for him at 185 pounds. But, let’s not go and put the cart before the horse. While Strickland may not be your traditional No. 1 contender — he’s ranked No. 5 — he has the opportunity to turn the division on its head.

Although Adesanya (24-2) is a massive betting favorite, there is more intrigue to this matchup among MMA observers than the matchup provides on paper. This is because the brooding Adesanya and loquacious Strickland have engaged in a war of words over the past couple of years in various settings. Many fans wished for this showdown to become a reality for no other reason than what is anticipated to be a memorable press week ahead of the fight.