Feb 9, 2019; Melbourne, Australia; Israel Adesanya (red gloves) gestures to Anderson Silva (blue gloves) during UFC 234 at Rod Laver Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasmin Frank-USA TODAY Sports
Israel Adesanya will look to repeat his recent heroics in his next fight as well
Israel Adesanya was at his usual best against Marvin Vettori in the main event of UFC 263. The ‘Last Stylebender’ was up for Vettori’s takedown and submission attempts, as he evaded them with ease.
After winning his first match against the Italian back in April 2018, many expected the rematch to be a close one, but Izzy eased to a unanimous decision win, scoring 50-45 on all three judges’ scorecard.
So, who’s next for the high-flying Nigerian?
No sooner did the fight end, than Adesanya made it clear that he wanted to face Robert Whittaker in a rematch. This time ‘The Last Stylebender’ wanted the fight to be in his own backyard – Auckland.
Izzy had won his middleweight title against Whittaker at UFC 243 in Melbourne, and a rematch definitely makes sense, given the way ‘The Reaper’ has bounced back following his loss.
Since his loss to Adesanya at UFC 243, Whittaker has beaten Darren Till, Jared Cannonier and Kelvin Gastelum to assert his claim as the number one ranked middleweight contender.
His recent performance against Gastelum was so dominant that it had an Adesanya rematch screaming in the immediate aftermath.
It is hard to look past an Adesanya-Whittaker rematch. However, if there is one opponent Adesanya would face other than Whittaker, it will have to be the goofy Scouse, Darren Till.
Izzy himself has expressed his desire to fight the tough Englishman. But Till needs to see off his next opponent Derek Brunson first. The pair are set to face probably in the month of August or September.
If Till manages to see off Brunson and a rematch between Adesanya and Whittaker is shelved, a fight between Israel Adesanya and Darren Till would be very much on the cards.
Follow our dedicated UFC page for instant UFC news and updates
