It was a contentious decision, but expat Whanganui fighter Israel Adesanya did not leave California with the Glory middleweight title after Dutch champion Jason Wilnis claimed a unanimous points victory in the main event of Glory 37 on Saturday evening, NZ time.
The 26-year-old Wilnis (30-6-1) was favoured by all three judges with scores of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47 after the five round fight at the The Novo club in down town Los Angeles.
It appeared the 27-year-old Adesanya (50-4-2) had the better of the opening two rounds, using his awkward striking style and speed to pepper Wilnis with blows from several angles, including a spectacular head kick while balanced on his hands.
However, Wilnis kept moving forward at his Nigerian-born challenger, and looked to connect with leg kicks and punching combinations to the body.
After a chess match, neither fighter was able to cause significant damage to the other, sending the result to the scorecards.