Israel Adesanya is one of the great fighters in MMA history and his run in the UFC's middleweight division will one day earn him a spot in the UFC's Hall of Fame.
It looks as though that day will arrive sooner than many, particularly Adensaya, had hoped.
Nassourdine Imavov crushed Adesanya with a blistering right hand Saturday seconds into the second round of their bout at anb Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in the main event of UFC Saudi Arabia. Adesanya went down and took a crunching left from Imavov, which was enough to convince referee Marc Goddard he'd seen enough.
Goddard halted it at 30 seconds of the second round and Imavov had the biggest win of his career.
The bigger news, though, is Adesanya. After looking terrific in a brisk first round, he got caught in the second. The upshot is that he's now lost three in a row and four of his last five. He's 35, will turn 36 in July and has nothing to prove. His greatness can not be denied.
Adesanya sloughed off a question about his future.
"I don't know," he said when asked what's next. "I have to chill and then think about things. I'll relax first for a little bit and just help the teammates who have fights coming up and yeah, see what I want to do."
Adesanya looked good enough that he could clearly continue to fight and be successful against most UFC fighters. Saturday's loss was his first in a non-title bout. He is 8-4 in title fights and is now 16-1 in non-title fights. So he could continue to fight and beat guys in the second half of the Top 10 and probably be competitive with those in the Top 5.
UFC CEO Dana White was impressed by his performance in the first, but he hadn't spoken to Adesanya and the moment was too fresh in his mind to make any statements about Adesanya's future.
"I thought he looked incredible right up until he got caught," White said. "[Izzy] was looking good and he was picking [Imavov] apart, staying on the outside. His takedown defense was incredible and he was chopping that calf kick. You know, the whole first round, he couldn't have had a better first round, and then he got caught."
That said, in his last three, he turned in a desultory performance in a decision loss to Sean Strickland. He was submitted by Dricus Du Plessis and on Saturday, knocked out with authority by Imavov.
It doesn't seem like there's a lot for him to fight for any more. He's made plenty of money, he had a lot run on top and he became a global superstar.
That's what Imavov aspires to and he said after he hopes to face the winner of the UFC 312 main event on Feb. 8, a middleweight title bout between Du Plessis and Strickland. White said "there are many possibilities," for Imavov and indicated a title fight is one of them.
Imavov has now won four in a row and is 7-1 with a no-contest in his last nine.
"I feel so good," Imavov said. "I said it all week long, I was in the perfect shape. I provided it tonight. I proved I was the better striker and now, the real bonus for me is going to be to fight for the belt."
That remains to be seen. He could get the Du Plessis-Strickland winner, or the UFC could pit him with unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev in a No. 1 contender's fight. He has plenty of options, most of which are attractive.
Adesanya, though, has to do some soul searching. Given his stature in the sport, it would seem beneath him to be fighting lower-ranked opponents and young fighters trying to make a name off of him.
He clearly loves the competition, though, which is why he so quickly agreed to take on Imavov.
There remains, though, the distinct possibility that we saw one of the greats reach the end of the line.
Israel Adesanya has done it all in the UFC. He has nothing left to prove. He's fought the best in the world and until Saturday, his only losses were to Alex Pereira, Du Plessis, Strickland and Jan Blachowicz. Each of those men held UFC titles.
He had moments of brilliance in each of those losses. On Saturday versus Imavov, he appeared on his way to ending the losing streak after an impressive first.
MMA, though, is a cutthroat business and the results speak louder than anything else.
He deserves to bask in the glory of a job well done and not concern himself with avenging a defeat.
That choice of whether to retire or fight, though, belongs to one man. He earned that right by sacrificing his blood, sweat and tears in pursuit of greatness.
He owes no one else a thing. The choice rests solely on his shoulders.
He needs to choose wisely. For a fighter who has done it all, he has a weighty decision ahead of him.