Dricus Du Plessis, Khamzat Chimaev, or Paulo Costa? Israel Adesanya's manager reveals likely next opponent for 'The Last Stylebender'
This weekend at UFC 293, Israel Adesanya is set to defend his middleweight title against Sean Strickland in a five-round bout.
Despite Strickland bringing in a two-fight winning streak, most observers expect ‘The Last Stylebender’ to win handily and retain his title.
If this is the case, who is Israel Adesanya likely to fight next? Most of the focus right now is on three potential opponents: No.1 ranked Dricus du Plessis, and Paulo Costa and Khamzat Chimaev, who are set to face off in the near future.
One man who probably has more insight than most into the future of ‘The Last Stylebender’ is Tim Simpson, the middleweight kingpin’s manager.
In a recent interview posted to YouTube by Submission Radio, Simpson had the following to say on the matter, after being asked if du Plessis was still next in line.
“I think so. I think at this stage, obviously we’ve got to see how everything shakes out, but I think that makes sense," said Simpson. "I think at middleweight again, big thing for Israel was new blood, you know, he’s fought a lot of these guys so many times...when you’re at his level he’s very good at staying focused and motivated, but I think a new name, a new challenge is what gets you through eight to ten weeks of hard training...”
Simpson then discussed the idea of Adesanya facing Chimaev, should he get past Costa. He added:
“I mean, best case scenario, you know how fast Israel wants to fight, he can turn around quickly...early next year do one, two, three months later do the other...I think both of those are opponents...who’s next? I think it would be Dricus, that’s what I’m thinking, it makes sense, that fight’s already sold...bang that out, and then maybe see who’s next, if it’s Khamzat, Costa gets a win maybe it’s Costa...”
Watch Tim Simpson discuss this below.
Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland: did both men make weight for their bout at UFC 293?
Israel Adesanya’s next title defense is set to come against Sean Strickland this weekend at UFC 293.
The weigh-ins for the event went down earlier today, and thankfully, things went without a hitch. Adesanya hit the scales at 184.8lbs, while Strickland was very slightly heavier at 184.9lbs.
Neither man seemed to struggle to make the 185lbs middleweight cut-off, meaning that with any luck, they’ll be at their best tomorrow night.
While most fans expect Israel Adesanya to win the fight, it’s been notable that Strickland has been able to get under his skin during the build-up.
In fact, ‘The Last Stylebender’ recently promised to “go John Wick” on ‘Tarzan’ after the challenger brought up the death of his dog, Millionaire.