Israel Adesanya ’s glittering MMA career has entered “do or die” territory. On Saturday, Riyadh will play host to Adesanya’s first non-title fight in almost six years. How it fares could very well determine whether the “Last Stylebender” will ever compete for UFC gold again.
After an era of comfortable domination at middleweight, Adesanya goes into his five-round headliner against Nassourdine Imavov off the back of two very different losses. The first, 17 months ago, stunned the fighting world into gaping-mouthed silence . Putting on a performance that paled in comparison to what we had come to expect from Adesanya, he was roundly beaten up by heavy underdog Sean Strickland over 25 minutes, losing his belt in emphatic fashion.
That night, UFC president Dana White lost a champion he had come to rely on for mainstream attention , instead forced to wrap the strap around the waste of Strickland, an ever-outspoken sponsor’s nightmare. But you only needed to look at the scorecards to see just how deserving of a title win it was – and with that, a new dawn had been ushered in at 185lb. The defeat sent Adesanya on an extended period of self-reflection, away from the Octagon.
He told New Zealand radio show The Rock : “I’m going to take time to look after myself, and I’m not going to fight for a long time.” Having previously averaged two or three fights a year, Adesanya stuck to his word and would not be seen in the cage until 11 months later, when a unique riva.
