Biggest Upsets in UFC History: Sean Strickland Beating Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 Tops List

• Sean Strickland dethroned Israel Adesanya, beating him by unanimous decision at UFC 293
• Matt Serra shocked the MMA world with a first-round knockout win over Georges St-Pierre
• Holly Holm handed Ronda Rousey her first-ever MMA defeat with a TKO win at UFC 193

No one saw that coming.

Sean Strickland defeated Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 on Sunday to become the promotion's new middleweight king.

Where does Strickland’s win rank among the biggest upsets in UFC history? Here’s Sports Brief's list.

Strickland defeats Adesanya (UFC 293)

Strickland stunned MMA fans everywhere with his victory over Adesanya at UFC 293. He entered the match as a heavy +450 underdog, but he was the one who dominated in this fight.

The bout swung in Strickland’s favour when he dropped Adesanya with a hard right cross in the closing seconds of the first round.

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Strickland tried to finish the fight right there and then, but Adesanya was able to survive the onslaught.

The champion managed to level things up with a solid display in the second round, but it was all Strickland after that.

The challenger won the final three rounds in all three judges’ scorecards as he pulled off the unanimous decision victory, per CBS Sports.

Serra defeats St-Pierre (UFC 69)

Georges St-Pierre entered his fight against Matt Serra as a heavy 7-1 favourite, having won his last six bouts in impressive fashion.

He was coming off a TKO win over Matt Hughes at UFC 65 to claim the UFC Welterweight Championship.

St-Pierre’s first title defense didn’t go according to plan, however, as Serra knocked him out in the first round of their showdown at UFC 69.

Serra stunned St-Pierre several times, landing a barrage of punches on the Canadian champ. He left the referee no other choice but to stop the fight at 3:25 of the opening round, per Bleacher Report.

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Holm defeats Rousey (UFC 193)

Ronda Rousey entered her fight against Holly Holm as the overwhelming favourite and rightfully so.

She was undefeated in 12 MMA fights, including 6-0 in the Octagon, heading into her showdown with Holm.

She won all of her matches by way of knockout, with only one bout lasting beyond the first round.

Such was Rousey’s dominance that her previous four fights lasted a combined two minutes and 10 seconds.

All good things must come to an end, though.

Holm sent shockwaves across the MMA world with her stunning performance against Rousey, recording a TKO win over the champion in the second round.

Holm sent Rousey crashing to the canvas after landing a high kick to the right side of her head. The referee stopped the contest at 59 seconds of Round 2, putting to an end the Rousey era in the UFC.

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Fans react to Adesanya's shocking loss

Sports Brief also reported on fans' reactions to Adesanya's loss to Strickland.

Some fans claimed they witnessed the end of an era with Adesanya's defeat at UFC 293.

They pointed out that the fight changed when he suffered his first career knockdown in the first round.