MMAjunkie Radio co-host and MMAjunkie contributor Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the co-main event for UFC 234.

UFC 234 takes place Saturday at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Australia. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and UFC Fight Pass.

Also see:

Israel Adesanya (15-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC)

Staple info:

  • Height: 6’4″ Age: 29 Weight: 185 lbs. Reach: 80″
  • Last fight: TKO win over Derek Brunson (Nov. 3, 2018)
  • Camp: City Kickboxing (New Zealand)
  • Stance/striking style: Switch-stance/kickboxing
  • Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:
+ Regional MMA titles
+ Professional kickboxing experience (76-5-2)
+ Professional boxing experience (5-1)
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt
+ 13 KO victories
+ 7 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Consistent pace and pressure
+ Good feints and footwork
+ Creative striking flow
^ Variates well to the body
+ Dynamic kicking arsenal
+ Strong inside the clinch
^ Good base and balance
+ Shows solid counter grappling
^ Underhooks, getups, separations

Anderson Silva (34-8 MMA, 17-4 UFC)

Staple info:

  • Height: 6’2″ Age: 43 Weight: 185 lbs. Reach: 77″
  • Last fight: Decision win over Derek Brunson(Feb. 11, 2017)
  • Camp: Spider Camp (California)
  • Stance/striking style: Southpaw/muay Thai
  • Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:
+ Former UFC middleweight champion
+ Regional MMA titles
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
+ 22 KO victories
+ 4 submission wins
+ 18 first-round finishes
+ KO Power
+ Superb offensive and defensive instinct
^ Deceptive setups and counter strikes
+ Precise striker
^ Intercepts and anticipates
+/-Heavily reliant on head movement
+ Strong clinch/Thai clinch
^ Deadly knees/solid base
+ Good guard retentions and triangle chokes
– Coming off of a two-year layoff

Point of interest: Man in the mirror

The co-main event in Melbourne features a fun middleweight pairing between two fighters who – despite being on opposite ends of their UFC careers – are often compared stylistically.

Known as “The Last Stylebender,” Israel Adesanya was introduced to martial arts at a young age and is no stranger to the stage of competition.

The Nigerian started spreading his proverbial wings within the kickboxing arena in his adopted home of New Zealand, as well as in a brief stint in China, where he was able to showcase his skills to international audiences. Adesanya also dabbled in professional boxing while earning himself a 5-1 record and two tournament titles in the process.

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A cunning martial artist, Adesanya earns his moniker with his creative striking flow. Seamlessly moving through space, Adesanya will intelligently use feints and footwork to establish his reads and set up his shots accordingly.

When feeling in stride, the 29-year-old talent will unleash a dynamic array of kicks, whether they’re powerfully thrown from the rear or sneakily delivered off of his lead. And when Adesanya smells blood in the water, he will celebrate his reach by varying his punches, using extended hands to hide the kill-shots to come.

From hand-traps that parlay into elbows to clinches that lead to knees, Adesanya shows solid answers at multiple ranges. Still, styles make fights, and I can’t help but wonder: how will Adesanya do when forced to look into a variation of a mirror?

Enter Anderson Silva.

Israel Adesanya reveres Anderson Silva, but blasts his choice of coach

Anderson Silva still dreams of greatness, which maybe shouldn't surprise us as much as it does

Despite being in the winter of his career and perhaps carrying fewer tools than before (particularly in the kicking department), Silva remains to be one of the most cunning foxes to trot through the forest of the mixed martial arts landscape.

An intelligent fighter who can either set up a kill shot or win a round with minimal yet efficient efforts, Silva can still get a lot done by doing very little in retrospect. From the psychological warfare of low-handed taunts to his accurate and intercepting counter strikes, Silva has made his money by confidently coordinating high-risk situations.

Despite this style working well for Silva throughout the majority of his career, speed is often the first thing to go amongst aging fighters as the legend could pay for leaning on those attributes too heavily here. But regardless of results, I suspect Silva will put all the proper hurdles down to help secure his space, as well as his position to play in the mirrors of his preferred range.

Next point of interest: The clinch