NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / UFC

UFC: Anderson Silva bout just another chapter in Israel Adesanya's life's story

Christopher Reive
By Christopher Reive
Senior Sports Journalist·NZ Herald·
5 Dec, 2018 06:30 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Israel Adesanya will meet Anderson Silva in the octagon at UFC 234 in February. Photo / Getty

Israel Adesanya will meet Anderson Silva in the octagon at UFC 234 in February. Photo / Getty

Israel Adesanya had a dream.

It was Sunday night, three weeks ago. The undefeated middleweight was fresh off a dominant win at UFC 230 in New York with plans of a summer break in Europe.

When he woke up on the Monday morning, the 29-year-old knew what his next move had to be.

His summer plans went on hold, and a fight against Brazilian UFC legend Anderson Silva was lined up for UFC 234 in Melbourne in February.

Before the bout was announced, Adesanya indicated to the Herald his next fight would be one for the fans – a title eliminator against a big, then unnamed, opponent.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

With Adesanya having previously said he wasn't all that interested in a bout against Silva, the announcement sent shockwaves through the UFC fandom.

"No one's living my life; no one really understands what's happening," Adesanya told the Herald.

"I decided this is how the movie has to play out. This is going to be the ending for the first part of my life movie and, for part two, I've already got a plan for that.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"It's weird, it's crazy, but we're in the Matrix now."

The fight is one mixed martial arts fans worldwide have wanted to see ever since Adesanya's UFC debut in February, with many noting the comparisons between their abilities in the octagon.

Israel Adesanya knocked out Derek Brunson in the first round of their bout at UFC 230. Photo / Getty Images
Israel Adesanya knocked out Derek Brunson in the first round of their bout at UFC 230. Photo / Getty Images

Both fighters are long, powerful strikers who back their attacking prowess up with clinical, elusive defensive work both in the striking game and when their opponents attempt to take the fight to the mat.

Silva, now 43 years old, held the UFC middleweight title from 2006 to 2013, defending the belt 10 times before losing it to American Chris Weidman. His 2457 days with the belt remains the longest title reign in UFC history.

Discover more

UFC

UFC: Hooker finally lands a ranked opponent

05 Sep 05:23 AM
UFC

Kiwi set to shock UFC world - again

19 Nov 01:04 AM
UFC

Adesanya's next big fight revealed

25 Nov 03:30 AM
UFC

Mark Hunt ends UFC career with disappointing loss

02 Dec 06:50 AM

The Brazilian last fought in 2017, where he took a unanimous decision win over American Derek Brunson. Brunson was also Adesanya's most recent opponent, with the Kiwi getting the job done before the end of the first round.

The fight between Adesanya and Silva is one of two confirmed on the Melbourne card, with Kiwi-born middleweight champion Robert Whittaker defending his title against American Kelvin Gastelum in the headliner.

While the headliner is a tantalising match up, it has been somewhat overshadowed by the announcement of Adesanya's bout.

"Robert's the lucky one because he gets to claim the pay-per-view dollars, but I'll get it back later on. But I think we're the main event," Adesanya said.

"We're the ones that people want to see. Get excited for this fight, because Silva's going to be fighting, I think, his last few years in Brazil or North America, so to have him come all the way to Melbourne and for a lot of people this will be the only chance they'll have to see him, it's going to be cool – and they get to watch me destroy him."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from UFC

UFC

'It is what it is': Blood Diamond on UFC exit and why he fights on

13 Jun 02:00 AM
UFC

On The Up: Kiwi duo get shot at UFC contracts

22 May 12:00 AM
UFC

Kiwi Kara-France confirmed for UFC title shot

14 May 05:09 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from UFC

'It is what it is': Blood Diamond on UFC exit and why he fights on

'It is what it is': Blood Diamond on UFC exit and why he fights on

13 Jun 02:00 AM

'I’ve done a lot for myself, but I’m doing it for someone else now.'

On The Up: Kiwi duo get shot at UFC contracts

On The Up: Kiwi duo get shot at UFC contracts

22 May 12:00 AM
Kiwi Kara-France confirmed for UFC title shot

Kiwi Kara-France confirmed for UFC title shot

14 May 05:09 AM
'I thought he was gone': Navajo Stirling continues UFC rise with win

'I thought he was gone': Navajo Stirling continues UFC rise with win

11 May 01:21 AM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP