Israel Adesanya voted 'Fighter of the Year' at 12th World MMA Awards
The wait is over as the winners for the prestigious 12th World MMA Awards have been announced, with Israel Adesanya taking home the Male Fighter of the Year.
The awards, which are produced by fighters only, had an extended voting period due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The voting period lasted from January 2019 to July 2020. The awards ceremony took place remotely on December 27, 2020.
Israel Adesanya, Amanda Nunes, and Jorge Masvidal pick up major awards
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was named the Male Fighter of the Year, while two-division women's champion Amanda Nunes was named the Female Fighter of the Year. Apart from Israel Adesanya and Amanda Nunes, Jorge Masvidal was named the Breakthrough Fighter of the Year for his performances against Darren Till and Ben Askren in 2019.
During the voting period, Israel Adesanya tore through the entire middleweight division. It started with the fight against his idol, Anderson Silva. After dispatching Silva, Adesanya earned himself the interim title by emerging victorious in a back and forth war against Kelvin Gastelum.
Then came the big moment. The Last Stylebender knocked out former champion Robert Whittaker in a title unification bout that headlined UFC 243. In his first title defense, Israel Adesanya took on and defeated Yoel Romero. Adesanya is undefeated to date and has two successful title defenses under his belt.
Check out the list of all the winners below:
'Charles Mask Lewis' Fighter of the Year: Israel Adesanya
Female Fighter of the Year: Amanda Nunes
Breakthrough Fighter of the Year: Jorge Masvidal
International Fighter of the Year: Israel Adesanya
Fight of the Year: Weili Zhang vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk - UFC 248
Knockout of the Year: Jorge Masvidal vs. Ben Askren - UFC 239
Submission of the Year: Demian Maia vs. Ben Askren - UFC on ESPN+ 20
The comeback of the Year: Stipe Miocic vs. Daniel Cormier - UFC 241
Upset of the Year: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway - UFC 245
Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year: Trevor Wittman
Trainer of the Year: Phil Daru
Gym of the Year: American Top Team
The referee of the Year: Herb Dean
Ring card Girl of the Year: Brittney Palmer
Leading Man: Dana White
Best Promotion: UFC
The personality of the Year: Joe Rogan
Analyst of the Year: Daniel Cormier
Best MMA Programming: Joe Rogan Experience
Media Souce of the Year: ESPN
Journalist of the Year: Ariel Helwani
Fighting Spirt of the Year Award: Dustin Poirier for Good Fight Foundation