Despite its return to Australia, UFC 293 is expected to lack fanfare, particularly because of the main event where middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, a huge favorite, defends his title against Sean Strickland, whose chances of winning are seen as small, even by UFC welterweight Matt Brown.
It’s unlikely that UFC 293 will be remembered as one of the most significant pay-per-view events of 2023. Even with its return to Australia, an often popular location for these events, the card for the upcoming Saturday lacks heavyweights beyond the major event where UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya defends his title against Sean Strickland. This bout doesn’t look too exciting, as the original plan was for Adesanya to fight top-ranked rival Dricus Du Plessis. Unfortunately, an injury prevented the South African from participating in the September event. Strickland was the replacement despite having just a 2-2 track record in his past four bouts and his latest victory was over Abus Magomedov, who has only two total fights in his whole UFC career.
As a result, Adesanya is a massive 6-to-1 favorite to win according to Draft Kings, which significantly reduces the thrill that usually comes with a main event of this scope. UFC welterweight Matt Brown shared his thoughts on the upcoming fight in an episode of The Fighter vs. The Writer. “I don’t see a ton [of hype],” Brown declared. “He’s a -600 favorite, I looked at the odds today. I don’t think there’s a ton of hype behind this. I don’t think anyone was really begging to see Strickland go fight Adesanya.” However, Brown does not completely dismiss Strickland because surprises occur frequently in MMA.
Brown asserts that Strickland’s best chance of victory would be to keep Adesanya guessing by varying his attacks. If he fails to do this, Brown thinks Strickland won’t find much success, especially in a five-round bout against a seasoned veteran like Adesanya. Strickland and Adesanya have both gone up against Alex Pereira and Jared Cannonier in the past; Strickland lost both matches. This doesn’t necessarily dictate how Strickland could take Adesanya by surprise, but Brown admits it seems unlikely.
Finally, Brown believes the fighter with the second most knockouts in UFC history isn’t likely to create a sensation in UFC 293, unless Adesanya manages to pull off a spectacular finish. Despite trying to generate interest, he projects that Adesanya is most likely going to dominate Strickland. “I’m stretching. I know that,” Brown confessed. “I’m trying to find a way to be interested in this fight because I agree with you. On paper, in all theory and all hypothetical scenarios, I see Izzy making a pretty easy night out of this, getting a big payday, having a great party in Sydney, Australia and going home with maybe a couple busted up knuckles is the worst injury he’s got to deal with.”