UFC middleweight Derek Brunson has claimed that his “Blonde Brunson” iteration would beat 185-pound king Israel Adesanya 10 out of 10 times.
Brunson jumped closer to a rematch with “The Last Stylebender” last weekend. In the UFC Vegas 36 main event, the 37-year-old rolled through Darren Till. After delivering some heavy ground-and-pound in the first two rounds, Brunson locked in a rear-naked choke in the third, forcing “The Gorilla” to tap.
Brunson’s latest victory marked five successes in a row since his loss to Adesanya in 2018. Decision wins against Elias Theodorou and Ian Heinisch got the veteran back on track, before “Blonde Brunson” arrived.
In three main events against the promising Edmen Shahbazyan, the 5-0 in 2020 Kevin Holland, and England’s biggest superstar Till, the new version of Brunson has looked unstoppable. And according to the man himself, the champ can’t stop him, not even if he had 10 cracks at trying.
Through a post on Twitter, Brunson continued to call out Adesanya. While suggesting the Nigerian-New Zealander’s previous win against non-blonde Brunson wouldn’t happen again in any instance, the #4-ranked middleweight revealed his confidence with his current infamous style.
“Israel Adesanya beats Derek Brunson 1 out of 10 times. Blonde Brunson beats Israel Adesanya 10 out of 10 times. I’ll gnp him or submit him inside 2 rounds. Bet the house.”
Brunson’s prediction is certainly a bold one. Since arriving in the UFC, Adesanya has torn through the middleweight division. A dominant performance over Robert Whittaker saw him claim gold, and comfortable defenses against Yoel Romero, Paulo Costa, and Marvin Vettori have left many wondering who can dethrone him at 185 pounds.
The 32-year-old possesses just one blemish on his 23-fight record. It came at light heavyweight against the 205-pound king Jan Blachowicz. While the Pole was able to take Adesanya down and control him, no one at 185 pounds has been able to replicate the feat. When Vettori attempted to utilize Blachowicz’s blueprint at UFC 263, he was met with an impressive takedown defense. Brunson will be hoping for more success than the Italian when gets his chance to exact revenge on Adesanya.
Brunson and Adesanya first met back at UFC 230. With seconds of the opening round remaining, “The Last Stylebender” proved to be too much for the middleweight mainstay on the feet. With the immense form of both men ever since, it appears inevitable that they’ll run it back in 2022.
With Adesanya and Whittaker set to meet in the Octagon for the second time in early 2022, Brunson announced his intention to wait for his title shot against the victor. But should he get the itch to return in the coming months, a clash with Jared Cannonier appears the most likely matchup.
Do you think “Blonde Brunson” can become the first man to defeat Israel Adesanya at middleweight?
