@Jackie Blue , I know Adesnaya hasn't even touched the top tier MW's yet and of course his wrestling is to be questioned as he is primarily a kickboxer. Still tho, you saw him stop Brunson's takedowns repeatedly, not that Brunson is the best wrestler at MW but he was/is an accomplished collegiate wrestler and that knowledge carries over into any mmartist's career. What I'm trying to say is, Israel is still learning and he is a master striker at that! This kid is dangerous as fuk. I only see Yoel whoopin his ass, not even Robert Whittaker beats him imo. Do you not like Israel bruv?
It was an impressive performance. It shows at the very least that he has take down defense. Just how good it is remains to be seen, but he's showing that he has the tools. Going over the UFC top 10 (plus the champion at the top) as it is currently listed on their website, it includes two guys that Israel already beat (Tavares and Brunson), so that shows he's proved that he's top ten.
You look at the two guys outside the champ and top 5 contenders that he hasn't faced yet, and that's Paulo Costa and David Branch. I think he probably beats Costa, unless perhaps he has some chin issues that I don't know about, or Costa just lands the perfect punch. I think Costa has more punching power, but Israel is more polished as a striker and should be able to outpoint him or possibly even put him away with a kick or a knee. I also think he beats Branch. Unfortunately for Branch, it seems like he wasted much of his prime outside of the big show and is starting to slow down and his chin is becoming more brittle.
I think Israel puts him out. He should have been able to beat Cannonier and he got put away instead. I'm not sold on Cannonier at all, so that says a lot about where Branch is at this point of his career and at his advanced age for a fighter. Which brings us now to the top 5 contenders plus the champion.
Among that group, I think the one who Israel has the best chance to beat is Kelvin. In that bout, I think Israel has a good chance to stuff Kelvin's take downs, assuming Kelvin even shoots at all considering how much he's been getting away from his wrestling lately. And I think Israel can out point him standing, although Kelvin has surprisingly fast hands and could possibly catch Israel, though I still favor Israel. I can see Weidman's grappling and size and strength giving Israel a lot of trouble. Weidman looked good against Jacare and then got caught towards the end of the fight.
But Weidman's not going to stand and bang with Israel like he did with Jacare. I'd favor Weidman, but give Israel a puncher's chance. I think Jacare beats Israel similarly to Weidman, except perhaps he can finish with a submission. I think Rockhold won't fuck around with Israel like he did with Bisping and he's a monster on top. I think Romero could either control Israel with wrestling or maybe even finish him standing. I think Whittaker is an easier fight than Romero because he's primarily a striker. Perhaps the hardest part for Israel would be getting to Whittaker as opposed to actually fighting him. That would be a good striking battle, could go either way, I guess.
