Israel Adesanya hints he’ll take new ‘risks’ in upcoming UFC Octagon return after three-fight skid

Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya teased significant stylistic changes in his upcoming return to the Octagon in 2026.

It’s been almost a full year since former UFC champion Israel Adesanya stepped foot into the Octagon. Adesanya, who has lost four of his last five fights, hasn’t competed since a TKO loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia in February.

Since the Imavov loss, Adesanya has teased a matchup with one-time foe Sean Strickland, but those plans were thwarted as Strickland was recently booked to fight Anthony Hernandez at UFC Houston. Now, Adesanya’s return opponent remains up in the air as he plots a potential comeback.

Despite retirement speculation, Adesanya remains interested in at least one more UFC fight to potentially get back into the middleweight title mix. But don’t expect the same Adesanya to return to the cage, as he recently admitted.

Israel Adesanya hints he’ll take more risks in planned UFC comeback

During a recent Q&A session at Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA, Adesanya was asked about his plans for an Octagon return and hinted at reverting to some of his old tactics.

“Whenever I’m out and about in Auckland, every day I always get the ‘Oh I hear you’re retired!’, and I used to explain myself,” Adesanya said.

“For me it’s not about belts anymore. I’ve got two shiny belts at home. It looks good, but I just wanna fight. I just wanna do things like I did on my way to the belt. I still fought really well when I was defending the belt, but I wanna fight more freely and try risky s— like I used to.

“Remember the Brad Tavares fight? End of the first round I went for a roll that failed. I want to try s— like that again.”

Adesanya is seeking his first UFC victory since knocking out Alex Pereira at UFC 287.