Israel Adesanya News

Adam D Martin - October 24, 2021

UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz explained what middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has to do in order to get the rematch. Blachowicz and Adesanya met back at UFC 259 earlier this year and Blachowicz defended his belt in an upset when he won a unanimous decision to hand Adesanya his first career loss in MMA. Despite the lopsided loss, Adesanya has made it clear that he intends to move back up to 205lbs in the future. Since losing to Blachowicz earlier this year, Adesanya defended his belt at 185lbs against Marvin Vettori and he is next set to take on Robert Whittaker in a rematch in early 2022. Should Adesanya defeat Whittaker, there will be fans calling for him to take a chance and move back up to light heavyweight.

Harry Kettle - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has revealed that he sent a DM to rival Paulo Costa after their battle at UFC 253. While he may have had a blip up at light heavyweight, there’s nobody better than Israel Adesanya at 185 pounds – or at least, that’s how it seems. In his second bout of 2020 he went toe to toe with long-time foe Paulo Costa and in one of the most dominant displays of the year, he successfully retained his belt against the Brazilian.

Cole Shelton - October 18, 2021

Israel Adesanya knows quite a bit about the UFC Vegas 41 main event on Saturday. Headlining the card is a middleweight fight between Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori. Both men are coming off title fight losses to Adesanya and Vettori has lost twice to the champ. Although Adesanya beat both of them, he still says people need to know both Costa and Vettori have failed drug tests in their past.

Adam D Martin - October 17, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya mocked Marvin Vettori following the criticism of his performance and win at UFC 263. Vettori recently had some choice words to say about the champ, suggesting that he isn’t actually that much of a better fighter, only that he fought a “smart” fight at UFC 263. Of course, this was the second time that Adesanya has defeated Vettori. The two previously met in 2018 with Adesanya winning a split decision. After Vettori went on a roll, the rematch took place this year, only Adesanya proved he’s the better man with another win.

Adam D Martin - October 6, 2021

Two title fights featuring Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane and Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 are being targeted for UFC 270. According to the French outlet “La Sueur,” UFC 270 is being planned to take place on January 22 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight is not official yet, but the UFC plans on having the UFC heavyweight title unified that night between the champ Ngannou and the interim champ Gane. As for the co-main event, the plan is to have to rematch between Adesanya and Whittaker. Overall, with these two title fights at the top of the bill, UFC 270 is shaping up to be a stacked card already. MMA journalist Aaron Bronsteter added the following:

Adam D Martin - October 5, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya took a shot at former UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones following his post with his fiancée. Jones was arrested two weeks ago in Las Vegas after his 2013 fight against Alexander Gustafsson was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Following the HOF ceremony, Jones was arrested on an alleged domestic battery incident that left his fiancée, Jessie Moses, with bumps and bruises on her face, according to hotel security. In addition, Jones was also charged with damaging a police vehicle after reportedly headbutting it. Days after this incident, however, Jones took to his social media to share a video of him and Moses kissing and making up. According to Jones, he and Moses plan on sticking together through the good and the bad. But posting the video has led to him taking shots from his rivals, and Adesanya had no problem taking to his social media to poke fun at Jones for the video.

Chris Taylor - October 2, 2021

Former UFC champion Michael Bisping has suggested a “fun fight” with a “big storyline” for reigning middleweight kingpin Israel Adesanya. Adesanya (21-1 MMA) is expected to collide in a rematch with Robert Whittaker in early 2022. Should ‘Stylebender’ emerge victorious over ‘The Reaper’ for a second time, Michael Bisping believes he knows the perfect next challenger.

Cole Shelton - September 28, 2021

Israel Adesanya has taken a shot at Jon Jones after his recent arrest. On Friday morning in Las Vegas, just hours after he was being inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame for his fight against Alexander Gustafsson, Jones was arrested. The news surprised many, due to the fact just hours before, Jones said he’s staying out of trouble and was preparing for his move to heavyweight. However, he was charged with misdemeanor battery domestic violence and felony injuring and tampering with a vehicle. For Adesanya, he says he wasn’t surprised to hear the news of “Bones” being arrested.

Christopher Taylor - September 27, 2021

Israel Adesanya’s coach Eugene Bareman does not believe Nick Diaz should have been fighting in the Octagon at UFC 266. Diaz (26-10 MMA) returned from a six year hiatus this past weekend for a rematch with Robbie Lawler. The pair had first met 17 years ago at UFC 47, with the Stockton Slugger emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.

Cole Shelton - September 27, 2021

Israel Adesanya vs. Derek Brunson 2 will likely be next, Adesanya’s coach, Eugene Bareman revealed. After Brunson submitted Darren Till in September, he called for a title shot against Adesanya. However, many assumed Adesanya’s next fight would be against Whittaker, which Dana White hinted at the fight being in January or February next year.

Christopher Taylor - September 24, 2021

Colby Covington and Israel Adesanya were quick to react after news broke that former UFC champion Jon Jones had been arrested in Las Vegas. Jones was in attendance for the UFC Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Thursday night, where his 2013 battle against Alexander Gustafsson was inducted into the UFC HOF. ‘Bones’ seemed to be in good spirits at the event and even shared optimism about fighting for the UFC heavyweight title in 2022.

Cole Shelton - September 23, 2021

Israel Adesanya has given up on his dream of headlining a UFC card in New Zealand. Adesanya called for his next title defense to happen in Auckland as he wanted to fight at home. Yet, as the country continues to lock down to the pandemic, which includes shutting down gyms like City Kickboxing and making it hard for fighters like Dan Hooker to fight, “The Last Stylebender” has no interest in fighting at home. Instead, he says the ‘bureaucrats’ can make their money elsewhere.

Adam D Martin - September 17, 2021

UFC president Dana White confirmed that the rematch between Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker is being targeted for January. Adesanya defeated Marvin Vettori via unanimous decision back in June at UFC 263, and the hope was that the UFC would be able to get the middleweight champ back in the cage one more time before 2021 was up. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the travel and quarantine rules for fighters in Australia and New Zealand, it has become difficult for the UFC to get this fight booked. In fact, as White told The Daily Telegraph in a recent interview, he is now targeting the Adesanya vs. Whittaker 2 fight to take place next year.

Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Derek Brunson says controlling champ Israel Adesanya on the ground isn’t good enough, as he wants to finish him. Brunson is one of the hottest fighters in the UFC right now as the veteran middleweight has won his last five fights in a row, with his latest win, a submission victory over Darren Till, being the most impressive of the bunch. Following the big win over Till, Brunson called out Adesanya for a rematch in what would be a middleweight title bout. The last time these two fought, there was no title on the line and Adesanya knocked Brunson out in a devastating fashion. However, Brunson believes that he has made the necessary adjustments in order to defeat Adesanya and show that he can be beaten — and finished.

Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold called out Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman for not backing Francis Ngannou. Rockhold makes his return to the Octagon after more than two years away in November at UFC 268 when he takes on Sean Strickland. Ahead of his comeback to the cage, Rockhold has been doing the media rounds and one of his stops was Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour.

Chris Taylor - September 4, 2021

Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was keeping tabs on today’s UFC Vegas 36 main event between Derek Brunson and Darren Till. Brunson (23-7 MMA) and Till (18-4-1 MMA) squared off this afternoon with hopes of earning a future title shot against Adesanya (21-1 MMA).

Harry Kettle - September 2, 2021

UFC middleweight king Israel Adesanya has given his thoughts on the fight between Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley. Last Sunday night, Jake Paul was able to keep his unbeaten pro boxing record going thanks to a split decision win over the aforementioned Woodley. “The Problem Child” had to face some adversity but did more than enough to get his hand raised, cementing his spot as one of the biggest draws in the sport right now.

Cole Shelton - August 22, 2021

Israel Adesanya is focused on defending his middleweight title but he is open to fighting for light heavyweight gold again. At UFC 259 in March, Adesanya moved up in weight to face Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight title in a try to become a champ-champ. Unfortnately, the fight did not go his way and he lost a decision for his first professional MMA loss.