In photos: Israel Adesanya trains with iconic "surprise guest" ahead of Dricus du Plessis clash at UFC 305

Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is booked to return to the octagon against archrival Dricus du Plessis next. 'The Last Stylebender' has now taken to Instagram and revealed that he and his City Kickboxing teammates were in for a pleasant surprise during fight camp.

Brazil's Demian Maia, an MMA and BJJ legend, visited them with his son. Adesanya's Instagram post featured eight slides, of which the first five comprised photographs.

The sixth and seventh had videos, while the final slide had a photo of the ex-UFC fighter with Adesanya. He indicated that his head coach, Eugene Bareman, was starstruck by the former UFC welterweight and middleweight title challenger. Adesanya wrote:

"To feel honored truly for me, being in the presence of greatness that bigger than just sports...it's about a man's character. We were blessed with a surprise guest in @demianmaia who casually strolled into the gym with his son and took time to bestow us with his knowledge. Personal highlight for me was seeing Eugene geek out lowkey haha, it's always cool to show love. Obrigado Demian, you're cool af!"

In the first slide, Maia seems to be demonstrating something, with Adesanya and others observing. In the second slide, Maia is speaking to another individual at the gym.

Check out the images below:

Demian Maia (left and right) shared martial arts wisdom with members of Adesanya's camp [Images courtesy: @stylebender on Instagram]

In the third and fourth slides, Adesanya, who's widely considered to be one of the greatest MMA strikers ever, appeared to be honing his grappling skills.

Check out the pair of photos below:

Israel Adesanya (left and right) has been working hard on his grappling and overall training [Images courtesy: @stylebender on Instagram]

The sixth and seventh slides consisted of videos in which Maia and Team Adesanya expressed their respect for each other. Bareman and Adesanya seemed to gift the special guest, Maia, a necklace as a memento of the visit.

The fifth slide showed Adesanya working on his grappling, whereas the eighth was a photo of him with Maia.

Check out the photos below:

Israel Adesanya works on his grappling (left); Maia and Adesanya pose together for a photo (right) [Images courtesy: @stylebender on Instagram]

Check out Adesanya's Instagram post below (*videos in slides six and seven):

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Israel Adesanya ends hiatus, booked to fight Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305

Israel Adesanya fights reigning UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis for the title in the headlining match of UFC 305 at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on Aug. 17, 2024 (Aug. 18 local time in Australia). Adesanya's last fight saw him lose the UFC middleweight title to Sean Strickland via unanimous decision in Sept. 2023.

During a UFC 305 press conference a few weeks back, Adesanya asserted that he was one of the most active UFC fighters and did so as a champion. 'Izzy' explained that he needed a break from the constant pressure of competing as a champion before rediscovering his desire to fight.

Apparently, watching his up-and-coming teammates, such as Carlos Ulberg and Kevin Jousset, succeed in the UFC helped reignite the flame for his comeback.

"Enjoy life. I took up golf. Slowed things down a little bit."

Check out Adesanya's comments below:

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