UFC 234 results: Israel Adesanya defeats Anderson Silva by unanimous decision

E. Spencer Kyte

UFC 234 results: Israel Adesanya defeats Anderson Silva by unanimous decision image

The crowd at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne didn't get the main event it was expecting, but it was still treated to an entertaining collection of fights at UFC 234.

Originally scheduled to be headlined by a middleweight title fight between Australian titleholder Robert Whittaker and fourth-ranked contender Kelvin Gastelum, the bout had to be called off Saturday afternoon when Whittaker was hustled to the hospital and right into surgery to correct what was later diagnosed as a twisted and collapsed bowel and internal hernia.

Losing the championship clash caused the UFC to shuffle the deck, elevating the highly anticipated clash between Israel Adesanya and former champion Anderson Silva into the main event and adjusting the lineup behind it.

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Despite the last-minute change, the card still featured a bunch of compelling contests and promising youngsters looking for another opportunity to shine. The cast of competitors who made the walk to the Octagon on Sunday did not disappoint.

After rattling off four wins in 2018, Adesanya made it five wins in five starts in the span of 364 days, pushing his record to 16-0 by collecting a unanimous decision victory over Silva in a fun 15-minute battle between the rising star and the former champion.

Both men showed each other a ton of respect in the all-standup affair, neither wanting to rush in and get caught. While it produced a few periods where neither man was throwing strikes, the charismatic competitors never stopped performing, engaging in a cat-and-mouse of feints, taunts and strikes over the three rounds.

Though Silva had some quality moments, Adesanya was the busier of the two throughout, using a steady diet of kicks and series of clean jabs to touch up "The Spider" and earn a clean sweep of the scorecards. Although the change at the top of the card could slow Adesanya's rise, this was another strong performance for the breakout star of 2018 who feels destined to fight for UFC gold before the year is out.

In the co-main event, Lando Vannata snapped a two-year, four-fight winless skid by dominating newcomer Marcos Mariano.

The entertaining all-action fighter took the Brazilian down almost immediately and spent nearly four minutes working from top position. With a minute left in the first, Vannata really started opening up with hard shots from top position, forcing Mariano to cover up. When he did that, "Groovy Lando" laced up a kimura and secured the tap.

Finally back in the win column, the Albuquerque-based lightweight respectfully asked Jim Miller to meet him in the cage in the summer. That fight makes a whole lot of sense for both competitors.

Here's a full look at what transpired at UFC 234 (all times are Eastern):

UFC 234 live blog

12:15 a.m.: Beautiful show of respect after the official results are announced between the rising star and the former champion.

Adesanya gives the utmost respect to Anderson Silva. Tells Whittaker to heal up quick, tells Gastelum to put down the belt he's been carrying around and calls it a night.

Silva gets a massive cheer from the crowd in Melbourne, echoes the sentiments he shared following his fight with Derek Brunson and thanks the crowd, saying he would like to fight in Curitiba.

That's it for the live blog — be good to one another and be sure to check out all of our post-fight coverage at Sporting News.

Round 3

Crowd in full throat to start the final round.

Silva chants in the crowd. Adesanya pressing forward, landing kicks. Silva catches a kick to the body and misses the flying knee as Adesanya gets back to his feet. Adesanya backs him into one of the corners, Silva's right eye starting to close. Adesanya invites him to the center of the cage, Silva calls him back to the fence and Adesanya obliges.

Two down, three to go and they're staring at each other.

Silva joins him in the center of the cage. Adesanya with a low kick and one to the body. Another kick to the quad, then he offers high, but Silva is hip to it. Hook to the body for Adesanya. Left hand follows and lands clean.

Two minutes left.

Silva hasn't offered much this round, see if he tries to sprint to the finish. Adesanya fighting smart, avoiding long exchanges and getting inside. Silva crashes forward, but can't find a home for anything.

Final minute of the fight.

Adesanya with a left. And a right. Silva offers a high kick. Right hand for Silva lands. Tornado kick from Adesanya misses. Nice show of respect at the horn. Should be a victory for Israel Adesanya.  (10-9 Adesanya, 29-28 Adesanya)

Official result: Israel Adesanya def. Anderson Silva by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)


Round 2

Left hand lands clean for Adesanya right out of the gate. Lead hook kick partially lands for Silva. Right hand counter for Silva lands as Adesanya comes forward. Lots of feints from Adesanya. They're playing with each other. Silva eats a couple shots like nothing.

Spinning back kick misses from Silva. Left hand down the pipe for Adesanya lands. Good right from Silva. Both are throwing singles, now Silva puts a couple together and has success. Leg kick from Adesanya connects.

Halfway home.

Good outside kick for Adesanya. Lead jab for Silva lands and the follow-up connects too. Silva pressing forward now, backs Adesanya into the fence. Collar tie, but he can't do anything. Low kick from Adesanya. Trading singles. Left for Silva lands.

One minute.

Silva chasing and lands an uppercut in the last 20 seconds. He might have stolen this round by landing the cleaner shots.  (10-9 Silva, 19-19 after two)

Round 1

Outside kick from Adesanya to start. Again. One minute in and Silva hasn't thrown anything.

Outside again for Adesanya. Now one from Silva. High kick from Adesanya, partially blocked, but only thrown with half power. Two minutes in.

Silva presses forward and Adesanya lands a right that wobbles him. Silva eats a couple more, smiles at Adesanya. Inside leg kick lands for Adesanya and Silva is reaching.

One shot lands for Silva, but he's chasing. Body kick lands for the former champ. One-two for Adesanya and Silva showboats a little, getting a pop from the crowd. Side kick to the leg from Silva.

Left hand lands for Adesanya and Siva slips out of the way of a high kick. Adesanya gives him a "just missed" motion. Silva offers a spinning kick of his own, Adesanya missing with one of his own and gives him the Morpheus, "Come on" at the horn.  (10-9 Adesanya)

11:52 p.m.: Remember, this one is only three rounds as it wasn't originally the main event, so only 15 minutes to work for Adesanya and Silva.

11:41 p.m.: Main event time.

It's not the final fight we expected, but it's still a compelling scrap between last year's breakout star, Israel Adesanya, and the former middleweight ruler, Anderson Silva. The delay with the middleweight title fight could shake up the original plans for the winner of this one, but a win for either man remains huge.

As much as Silva isn't the same guy, beating him is the biggest gives Adesanya a massive name on his resume as he continues to push towards the top of the division. As for Silva, if he can halt Izzy's climb, it will put him right back into the thick of the title chase and be his biggest win since beating Chael Sonnen in their rematch at UFC 148.

11:37 p.m.: Vannata enjoys his handiwork on the replay, shouts out his grappling coach, Harry St. Leger, and politely calls out Jim Miller for a fight in the summer. That would be a fun little scrap in the middle of a card. Sign me up.

Round 1

Touch of gloves and here we go.

Long kicks for Mariano to start. Vannata responds by going low with one. Vannata showing a spin, misses with a right hand. Spin from Mariano is blocked before they trade low leg kicks.

Body lock for Vannata and he dumps Mariano to the canvas. Vannata in half guard, trying to control Mariano on the ground. Mariano recovers guard and looks for an omoplata, but nothing there.

Vannata postures and fires, landing some clean shots. Mariano just accepting the position and Vannata happy to stay there and drop shots. Big right hand lands and hurts Mariano with elbows behind it. Another elbow lands and Vannata starting to open up more now with short time.

Kimura for Vannata and Mariano taps almost immediately. Just an absolutely dominant effort for the fan favorite.

Official result: Lando Vannata def. Marcos Mariano by submission (kimura) at 4:55 of Round 1

11:24 p.m.: Time for the co-main event between all-action fighter "Groovy" Lando Vannata and newcomer Marcos Mariano.

Vannata, who started his UFC career with a thrilling effort against Tony Ferguson and a highlight reel knockout of John Makdessi is now winless in the last two years, having gone loss-draw-loss-draw over his last four. Mariano's nickname is "Dhalsim," as he resembles the Street Fighter II character with insanely long arms and legs. No word yet on if they stretch all the way across the cage.

11:22 p.m.: Another preview of UFC 235, this time focused on the light heavyweight main event between Jon Jones and Anthony Smith. It's a loaded fight card from top to bottom on Saturday, March 2.

11:17 p.m.:  That's eight straight for Ricky Simon, who continues to show that he's someone to watch in the bantamweight division and the owner of an outstanding mullet. 

Round 3

Simon gets dragged to the ground to start, Yahya looks for the triangle right away, but Simon is hip to it and escapes. Good kicks from Yahya and a right over the top glances. Big shot from Simon and Yahya presses forward with three that fall short.

Yahya diving for Simon's legs, but he's not there. It's terrific defense from the 26-year-old tonight.

Left hand connects for Simon as Yahya stands. He's cut on the top of his head now too. Simon bleeding from the left eye as well. Both land short rights in close. Another stuff for Simon, who stays heavy and only lets Yahya up once he's safe. Simon putting the pressure on now with two minutes to go.

Good jab for Simon, Yahya with a two-piece in return, but Simon dumps him to the canvas once more. One minute. Simon wades into Yahya's guard, offering elbow and punches, staying close. Simon stands and fires one more punch as he dives in just before the horn.

A dominant effort for the newcomer, who could move into the Top 15 with his third UFC win.

Official result: Ricky Simon def. Rani Yahya by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-25)

Round 2

Yahya kicks to start, but Simon checks it. Right hand lands for the youngster. Body kick for Yahya. Simon dumps Yahya to the mat, ducking under a punch. Yahya up.

Clash of heads opens a cut on the side of Simon's right eye. Body kick again from Yahya. Simon gets away from the takedown attempt again. Yahya having a little more success this round, being the aggressor more, but it hasn't resulted in any discernable offense yet. Another dump takedown for Simon, who lets Yahya up right away.

They trade right hands and Yahya connects with a good right that staggers Simon and now he's hunting. Two more rights find a home and a left behind it before Simon drops Yahya with a shoulder block. High kick from Yahya as he gets back to his feet. Simon reaching a little more on his punches and Yahya looking for the big shot. Simon dumps Yahya to the ground and crawls into his guard.

Yahya with an illegal kick that doesn't get called right before the horn.  (10-9 Simon, 20-17 Simon)

Round 1

Simon (and his mullet) pushing forward to start. Yahya goes high with a kick. Simon counters with a left hand. High kick again from Yahya and he ducks into a takedown. Simon stuffs it and now they're slinging.

Yahya's striking is so off-balanced at times, but the jab is true there. Right uppercut for Simon lands. Yahya dives at a single, but Simon is out of the way. Body kick for Yahya and he backs up Simon with a right hand. Simon responds with a right of his own that drops the Brazilian. Yahya looks to tie him, Simon wants none of it and calls him back to his feet. The sequence repeats itself and Simon smells blood.

Right hand for Yahya connects, but Simon wears it well. Great defensive wrestling from Simon. Left to the body for Simon lands. Yahya responds with a one-two, but nothing on it. Simon avoids the telegraphed shot, times a dump of Yahya as well. He's thinking about wading into Yahya's guard but decides against it. A head kick lands just before the horn. Great round for Simon.  (10-8 Simon)

10:52 p.m.:  Bantamweights Rani Yahya and Ricky Simon up next.

Yahya is tied with TJ Dillashaw for the most finishes in the division, but this is the first time he's fought on pay-per-view and a lot of people favor Simon in this matchup. The Pacific Northwest-based upstart dominated Montel Jackson last time out and has very good wrestling, but it will be interesting to see if that plays into the Brazilian veteran's hands here.

Cruz does a great job speaking about how underrated Yahya is as he's in the prep point. The veteran has won three straight submissions heading into this one and 7-1 over his last eight fights.

10:44 p.m.: De La Rosa drops a near flawless performance in her third appearance, securing her third straight stoppage win. She's a legit prospect in the 125-pound weight class and someone we told you to keep an eye on earlier in the week , so hopefully, this gets you paying attention. 

Round 2

Kassem coming forward to start, but De La Rosa backs her up with a couple punches to the face, completing a takedown as soon as she gets in close. Right into half guard and Kassem is back to playing defense as De La Rosa feeds her elbows and ties her up on the ground.

Knee-on-belly now for the American and she's over into mount. Sets up the mounted triangle and starts hammering down with elbows. Transitions into the armbar, but Kassem rolling with it, refusing to tap. De La Rosa keeps the triangle latched on though, adding in elbows. Now she moves to mount again, the triangle still locked up.

Kassem defending well, but now it's another armbar attempt and Kassem is forced to tap.

Outstanding performance for Montana De La Rosa!

Official result: Montana De La Rosa def. Nadia Kassem by submission (armbar) at 2:37 of Round 2

Round 1

Quick touch and they're throwing, with De La Rosa backing up Kassem with punches. The American puts her on the canvas right away, passing to half guard instantly. Kassem getting bullied right now and De La Rosa dropping elbows and punches to the body and head.

Kassem recovers guard, but De La Rosa passes again. De La Rosa pins the arm and keeps punching away, but now Kassem recovers guard. Kassem working a high guard, De La Rosa going body-head and climbing into half guard again.

Kassem keeping her close, nullifying offense right now, but De La Rosa wisely advancing and staying as busy as possible to maintain top position and avoid the standup. Kassem tries to shrimp out and De La Rosa moves to side control, advancing to north-south and looking for a kimura at the end of the round. She can't finish, but she dominates the frame.  (10-8 De La Rosa)

10:27 p.m.: Flyweights up next as Nadia Kassem squares off with Montana De La Rosa. Kassem is undefeated and making her debut at '25 after missing weight in her first UFC appearance at strawweight, while De La Rosa is 2-0 in the Octagon with a pair of submission wins.

10:25 p.m.: Trailer drops for UFC 235, promo'ing Woodley vs. Usman and Anik announces a June pay-per-view return to Chicago. It then cuts to the crowd where Donald Cerrone and Tai Tuivasa are doing "shooeys" out of Cowboy's boot.

10:20 p.m.: Crute quotes Dana White with a loud "Have you heard about Jimmy *&@^$# Crute?!" to open his interview. The youngster is now 10-0 overall and positioned to be someone the promotion can build around in the Oceanic region going forward.

Round 1

Touch of gloves and we're off.

Southpaw for Alvey, as always. Crute coming forward to start, lands an inside low kick. High kick is blocked. Goes up there again and it's blocked again. Low and inside with power for Crute. Body kick now for Crute and another low, inside kick joins it.

Left connects for Alvey. Crute goes to the body with a kick again. Right hand for Alvey, Crute counters with one of his own and Alvey is seriously hurt. Crute walks off, but the referee didn't stop it. Alvey stands and he's wobbly, prompting Crute to pounce and pound him out.

Alvey pops to his feet and objects to the stoppage as Anik and Cruz explain that Alvey voiced concerns about referee Marc Goddard stoppiong his fights early in the past. Protest or not, Crute cracked him good and was pouring it on. Rather than just covering up, Alvey should have tried to do something more.

Official Result: Jimmy Crute def. Sam Alvey by TKO (strikes) at 2:49 of Round 1

10:12 p.m.: Crute is a tough, young dude with a bunch of potential, but seems too willing to trade at times. Will be interesting to see how he does against the veteran in this one.

10:10 p.m.:  Alvey crying a little on the walk to the cage for his first pay-per-view appearance. He's had a ton of UFC fights and more than 45 bouts overall and this is the first time he's been on a numbered card, so you can understand the emotions.

10:08 p.m.:  First up on the main card, a light heavyweight clash between Jim Crute and Sam Alvey. Apparently, Crute is officially going by "Jimmy" now, while Alvey is rocking some old-timey facial hair for this one. Also, Alvey said pre-fight that he's never losing again — he's done with it — so we'll see if that holds up.

10:00 p.m.: Welcome to the pay-per-view folks. Jon Anik sets the table, explaining what happened earlier today and Dominick Cruz, who knows a thing or seven about getting injured, how it can happen late like this. Well done by Cruz.

9:55 p.m.: Chael Sonnen and Gilbert Melendez breaking down Devonte Smith's performance and setting up the pay-per-view. It's a little weird to me since they're doing it without a host. Sonnen filling that role, but that feels like a waste of his best skills, though it means no Dana White shouting into the camera, so there is that.

9:52 p.m.:  Fun preliminary card overall — great performances from Jalin Turner, Kyung Ho Kang and Devonte Smith, as well as a couple solid back-and-forth battles. I know no one wants to admit when events with few names deliver, but things are going pretty well in Melbourne so far tonight and I expect more of the same on the main card. See you at the top of the hour.

9:49 p.m.:  Gastelum interview with Megan Olivi where he has the belt over his shoulder, declaring himself the middleweight champion, citing how things work in the wrestling world. Wishes Whittaker a quick recovery and offers him a shot at "my title" when he's healthy, doesn't know what's next for him.

9:46 p.m.:  Smith is the goods, man, and Factory X keeps rolling. He does a great job measuring distance, waiting for his openings and then finishing as soon as he gets the chance. He has star potential and drops a call out of Francisco Trinaldo.

Round 1

Touch of gloves and we're off.

Ma's hands are a little low for a bout against a guy as quick and powerful as Smith. Low kick from Smith to start. Again. Ma switches stances. Smith goes high with the kick, but it's blocked.

Ma very tentative to open here. Body shot for Smith. Low kick again for Smith. Ma hasn't landed anything yet through the first half of the round. Another low calf kick connects and Ma switches stances again.

Right hand just misses for Smith. Low kick for Ma and Smith counters with clean, quick hands and stumbles Ma. Smith pounces and this one is done. "King Cage" is lightning quick and efficient with them hands, boy.

Official Result: Devonte Smith def. Dong Hyun Ma by TKO (strikes) at 3:53 of Round 1

9:35 p.m.: Final prelim is on deck — a lightweight contest between Devonte Smith and Dong Hyun Ma. Smith is another Factory X Muay Thai product and an intriguing prospect, while Ma is a 27-fight veteran a tough test for the improving American.

9:31 p.m.: Young begins his post-fight interview speaking his native tongue (Te Reo Maori) and dedicating the fight to his mom, who is watching him fight live for the first time in his career and wraps by speaking about the issues battling the youth at home. Great use of his platform.

From a performance standpoint, it's hard not to like what Young brings to the cage, as he's always moving forward, happy to eat shots to land one of his own and tougher than a $3 steak. He's one to continue tracking in the featherweight division.

Round 3

Good jab to start for Arnett. Triples up on it and stumbles Young with a right while he's off-balance.

Left hook for Young, who never stops coming forward. Good combination from Young lands. The volume feels like it's starting to add up. Arnett just misses, Young counters with a right. Arnett responds in kind.

Young finds a home for one and follows up with two more. Halfway home. Good right for Arnett. Triple jab from Arnett, but nothing much on them. Counter left lands clean though.

Under 90 seconds to go. Right over the top lands for Young. Arnett is landing good shots, but he's throwing one, while Young connects with two, three, four in response. Uppercuts from Young and a good right as he looks to pour it on.

Arnett gets one back with a nice left and another right. Two more land and now he's getting the better of an exchange in the center, only for Young to connect with a clean right than spins Arnett to the canvas.  (10-9 Young, 30-27 Young)

This is another one of those fights where the scores could be all over the place. Arnett landed good, clean shots throughout, but he was "one and done" most of the time, while Young maintainted his volume throughout. The late knock down is huge as well.

Official Result: Shane Young def. Austin Arnett by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Round 2

Young maintaining pressure to start Round 2 and Arnett is down to throwing singles. He's landing, but it doesn't make Young go backwards or think twice about coming in.

Good left by Arnett, but nothing with it and Young continues to march forward. The left lands again, but Young is undeterred. Counter right lands clean for Arnett. Right in response for Young.

Two minutes left.

Body kick lands for Young. Double jab for Arnett lands. Young reaching a little. One-two for Arnett connects, but Young maintains forward pressure. Good right for Young and again. He's starting to open up now, putting it together in the final minute.

Young in on a single, defended well by Arnett with lands a left on the break. One-two from Young and a they fire at each other to the bell. This one is heating up.  (10-9 Young, 20-18 Young)

Round 1

Young forward right out of the gate, throwing jabs, staying busy. Right hand follows the jab and connects. Again. Young happy to stay in the pocket and throw, clipping Arnett with the same right hand over the top multiple times.

Young's activity is impressive and tough to deal with, but Arnett is doing a good job. He's not throwing a lot, but is landing sharp when he connects. Young just keeps the pressure on the whole time, but Arnett is handling it well so far. Will be interesting to see who can make the greater adjustment between rounds.

Arnett using his length well and reddening up Young, who just keeps pressing forward. Low kick inside for Young. Arnett fighting loose and confident, but Young is starting to change it up, using more kicks.

Good left hand as Young closes the distance, with another one behind it. Good way to close the round for the New Zealander.  (10-9 Young)

9:05 p.m.:  Should be a fun featherweight scrap here as Austin Arnett looks for his second straight win against Shane Young, another talented member of the City Kickboxing crew who styled on Rolando Dy last time out and gave Alexander Volkanovski a good fight on short notice in his Octagon debut. 

9:01 p.m.: Close fight, no objections to the scoring. Kara-France was the more active of the two and landed solid, even if Paiva didn't look like he was ever hurt or wobbled. This was a solid win for Kara-France and a good showing for Paiva in his promotional debut as well. Nothing but positives for both guys here.

Round 3

Kara-France pushing forward early, but nothing lands. Left hand for Kara-France lands, but Paiva counters inside. He's now happy to eat one in order to land two, which should make for an interesting final round.

Left hand for Paiva finds a home. Right for Kara-France just misses. Low kick for Kara-France is caught, with Paiva looking to turn it into a takedown. As Kara-France tries to circle out, Paiva connects flush with an inadvertent low blow, prompting referee Marc Goddard to call time.

Kara-France calls for the crowd to get loud. Paiva gets a warning and we're back at it.

Kara-France hunting on the restart, but hasn't found a home for anything. Paiva sticking good shots in as Kara-France dips in. Combination from Paiva crashes home, prompting a takedown from the Kiwi. Back up with two minutes to go.

Kara-France trying to get inside and land, but he's only connecting with soft singles. Paiva not throwing much, but he's keeping Kara-France at a distance and connecting more whenever he throws. Good left from Kara-France, countered by one from Paiva. Late shot from Kara-France, who completes the takedown on the horn.  (10-9 Kara-France, 29-28 Kara-France)

This one could go either way. Kara-France was more active and seemed to land more, but Paiva connected with the heavier shots and ate pretty much everything the Auckland based fighter fed him. Interesting to see how this one is scored.

Official Result: Kai Kara-France def. Raulian Paiva by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Round 2

Low kick from Paiva to start. Now it's Kara-France in on a single, defended and reversed by Paiva, who lands on top and moves to side control. This is a bad spot for Kara-France. Kara-France bucks and scrambles back to his feet; nicely done. He's in on a takedown again, which makes you think those low kicks early have been doing damage. Paiva defends and reverses on the fence, but Kara-France lands on the exit as they move to the center.

Two minutes down, both offering in the center, neither landing with anything solid. Knee to the body from Paiva finds a home and he's working the midsection as Kara-France is content to stay on his back after a failed takedown attempt. Right hand cracks home for Kara-France, followed by a clean left. Counter left uppercut from Paiva evens things out. There is a cut on the corner the left eye of Paiva, but the blood is running down the side of his face, not into his eye.

One minute left. Good low kick from Paiva stops Kara-France's string of jabs. Kara-France doing a good job darting in, landing and getting out of the way. Paiva counters with two good rights and a guillotine attempt at the buzzer.  (10-9 Paiva, 19-19 after two)

Round 1

Low kick from Kara-France to start and a right hand over the top lands clean for the New Zealander. Another one cracks home and Paiva looks to grapple, but Kara-France slips out without issue. Very timid start for Paiva — not throwing much and looks hesitant. Rushes in for a takedown, but Kara-France defends well.

Two down, three to go. Paiva pressing forward, but Kara-France not bothered, landing the uppercut before circling away. Paiva just not throwing and eats a right hand down the pipe. Low kick for the Brazilian lands stiff. Jab to the body by Kara-France. Right hand for Paiva and he looks to grapple, but Kara-France escapes to space.

One minute left. A little more offense from Paiva, but nothing landing. High kick glances and a right just slips by before the horn. ( 10-9 Kara-France)

8:35 p.m.:  Flyweights Kai Kara-France and Raulian Pavia are up next.

The City Kickboxing representative Kara-France was a member of Team Cejudo on Season 24 of The Ultimate Fighter and looked outstanding in his promotional debut late last year, while Paiva punched his ticket to the Octagon with an August victory on the all-Brazilian edition of the Contender Series. This one should be fun.

8:28 p.m.:  Recorded interview with Israel Adesanya who says he dealt with some adversity early in the week, anticipates stopping Silva inside the distance and that he will win the middleweight title in 2019. He gets his chance to make good on the first of those proclamations in a couple hours.

8:18 p.m.:  Just a fun, wild gunfight between two guys who always put on a show.

Kang is a perfect addition to the middle of the bantamweight ranks — a guy with solid finishing skills, tons of heart and a willingness to get into a brawl if that's how things play out. He's 4-2 with a No Contest in seven starts and his only losses have been by decision and this victory should ensure he's back for another entertaining scrap in the next six months.

Round 1

Trading kicks to start, Ishihara firing more frequently, though neither landing anything of consequence. Right hand lands for Ishihara as Kang looks to close the distance. Both fire and both land, Ishihara clipped first, but catching Kang with a counter as he rushed in carelessly. Back on the feet, both are hunting for kill shots, throwing defensive tactics out the window. A knee up the middle from the Thai clinch lands for Kang and drops Ishihara. Somehow, "Yashabo" is still upright and slinging, while Kang looks to get him out of there, but cannot connect on the finishing shot.

Two minutes left and Kang swings Ishihara to the ground and takes his back, sinking his hooks in. Kang fishes the arm under the chin and Ishihara goes to sleep. What a wild four minutes!

https://twitter.com/ufc/status/1094405062363734016

Official result: Kyung Ho Kang def. Teruto Ishihara by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:59 of Round 1

8:10 p.m.: Teruto Ishihara vs. Kyung Ho Kang kicks off the televised prelims. The former is on a two-fight skid and has dropped four of his last five, while the latter has gone 1-1 since returning from his mandatory military service.

8:05 p.m.:  Dana White provides an update on Whittaker's health, suggesting that if everything went smoothly, "The Reaper" could be cleared to resume training as soon as four weeks from now.

7:48 p.m.:  A little break before the final four prelims begin, which start at the top of the hour. See you then!

7:45 p.m.:  Turner is a guy that diehards have been hearing about for a while now and this was far more indicative of what he's capable of, fighting back down at lightweight and not sharing the cage with an underrated stud like Luque. His size and power is always going to be a problem for peope and if he can continue putting it together like this, Turner should get plenty more opportunities to impress in the Octagon.

7:43 p.m.: Official result: Jalin Turner def. Callan Potter by knockout (strikes) at 0:53 of Round 1.

7:40 p.m.: This one didn't take long as Turner avoided getting tangled up on the ground with Potter and uncorked on him in the center of the cage. A right hook started it and Turner instantly knew Potter was hurt, prompting him to unload and get the finish. Outstanding performance from "The Tarantula" in his sophomore appearance in the Octagon.

7:35 p.m.: Callan Potter vs. Jalin Turner closes out the Fight Pass Prelims. Second appearance for Turner, who debuted against surging welterweight Vicente Luque, while Potter makes the walk into the Octagon for the first time.

7:33 p.m.:  Solid performance for Martinez, who said he was far more comfortable in the cage for his sophomore appearance after dealing with nerves in his debut. Chalk up another victory for Marc Montoya and the team at Factory X Muay Thai, who just keep rolling after a breakout campaign in 2018.

7:31 p.m.: Official result: Jonathan Martinez def. Wuliji Buren by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

7:24 p.m.:  Buren started strong, securing a takedown and landing in mount before attacking an armbar. But yet again, Martinez was able to counter and largely control the rest of the action on the canvas, finishing on top, landing heavy strikes as the horn sounded.  10-9 Martinez, 30-27 Martinez

7:18 p.m.:  Another five minutes spent largely in close quarters, with each man hitting a couple nice sweeps on the ground. Martinez controlled the final minute-plus, which likely secured him the round.  10-9 Martinez, 20-18 Martinez

7:12 p.m.:  Good opening round for Martinez, who recovered from an early takedown to control the grappling and connect on the most effective offense of the round.  10-9 Martinez

7:07 p.m.: Wuliji Buren vs. Jonathan Martinez is first up.

Second UFC appearance for Martinez, third for Buren and barring a draw, someone is leaving with their first UFC victory.

7:00 p.m.:  Welcome to the UFC 234 live blog.

Obviously, we enter into tonight's fight card a little bummed out because earlier today, middleweight champ Robert Whittaker was forced out of his title fight main event against Kelvin Gastelum and hustled into hernia surgery. It's a tough blow for "The Reaper," who missed out on the chance to defend his title at home last year as well, and also a gut-punch for the challenger, as now Gastelum is forced to wait a little longer for his chance to challenge for UFC gold.

While there have been tons of criticisms about the restructured fight card, which is now headlined by a three-round bout between Israel Adesanya and former middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva, the best explanation of why this is still a card worth tuning in for tonight came from reigning featherweight kingpin Max Holloway:

Hopefully people take the Hawaiian's advice and fans get more than they expect this evening.

UFC 234 results

Main card

  • Israel Adesanya def. Anderson Silva by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
  • Lando Vannata def. Marcos Mariano by submission (kimura) at 4:55 of Round 1
  • Ricky Simon def. Rani Yahya by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-25)
  • Montana De La Rosa def. Nadia Kassem by submission (armbar) at 2:37 of Round 2
  • Jim Crute def. Sam Alvey by TKO (strikes) at 2:49 of Round 1

Preliminary card

  • Devonte Smith def. Dong Hyun Ma by TKO (strikes) at 3:53 of Round 1
  • Shane Young def. Austin Arnett by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
  • Kai Kara-France def. Raulian Paiva by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
  • Kyung Ho Kang def. Teruto Ishihara by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:59 of Round 1
  • Jalin Turner def. Callan Potter by knockout (strikes) at 0:53 of Round 1
  • Jonathan Martinez def. Wuliji Buren by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

UFC 234 latest news 

— Anderson Silva is a significant underdog against Israel Adesanya. Sporting News explains that if "The Spider" can't pull off the upset than it should be time to hang up the gloves.

Israel Adesanya tells SN that regardless of how much he respects Silva, he plans on knocking him out.

— UFC 234 is a unique card. SN explains why Montana De La Rosa is someone to watch on the show.

E. Spencer Kyte