Israel Adesanya’s ‘hunger’ questioned by two-time rival after latest setback at UFC Seattle

One of Israel Adesanya’s biggest rivals believes the former UFC middleweight champ needs to reignite his passion for fighting.

Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya’s lone losing streak of his MMA career continued earlier this year at UFC Seattle. Adesanya lost to Dana White’s Contender Series alum Joe Pyfer by second-round TKO in the UFC Seattle headliner to mark his second consecutive TKO defeat and fourth-straight loss overall.

It was another head-scratching performance for many as Adesanya dropped another main event booking at UFC Seattle. The former middleweight titleholder and likely future UFC Hall of Famer hasn’t won since knocking out Alex Pereira at UFC 287.

Many theories have been shared regarding Adesanya’s struggles and what’s next for him in his career. In his UFC Seattle post-fight interview, Adesanya made no excuses for his performance and dismissed the narrative that he could hang up the gloves after fighting Pyfer.

One of the fighters who knows Adesanya best, a two-time rival turned part-time training partner, believes Adesanya needs a full reset to snap his losing streak.

Robert Whittaker: Israel Adesanya’s ‘comfort’ a major reason for UFC skid

In a recent interview on Fox Sports Australia, former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker shared an interesting take on Adesanya’s ongoing skid.

“I think he needs to find that hunger,” Whittaker said of Adesanya.

“It’s easy to say he may be a little comfortable at the moment. He’s got money, he’s reached the top of the mountain, he’s done everything. He’s ticked every box. What is there he needs to achieve anymore?

“He needs to find that drive to continue doing what he’s doing, to continue to light that fire, that hunger, that love for the game,” Whittaker continued on Adesanya. “I don’t think it was a bad thing. We all learn from our losses, and I think this is a good point for him to just make those decisions and work out where he needs to go and what he wants to do.” (h/t MMA Junkie)

Whittaker has lost to Adesanya twice in his UFC career, and the two have trained together in recent months. As of this writing, Adesanya’s future remains uncertain, although we could learn more in the coming months.

Do you agree with Robert Whittaker’s take on Israel Adesanya’s struggles? Let us know in the comments