Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo discuss Israel Adesanya's potential next opponent after UFC 305 loss: "Give him new blood"
Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo have addressed Israel Adesanya's potential options after the his recent defeat. The pair seemingly zeroed in on a rising star in the UFC middleweight division as the ideal next opponent for 'The Last Stylebender'.
Adesanya's most recent fight saw him suffer a fourth-round submission defeat against UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 this past weekend.
Presently, the Nigeria-born New Zealander is on a two-fight losing streak. Many believed that the former two-time UFC middleweight champion would retire after the loss against du Plessis.
But during his octagon interview, Adesanya asserted that he wasn't hanging up the gloves and later reiterated that stance at the post-fight press conference. Nevertheless, the 35-year-old has maintained that he isn't in a rush to return to the octagon.
In the latest edition of their Pound 4 Pound podcast, former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo addressed Israel Adesanya's next move.
Usman stated:
"Where does Israel go from here? A lot of people were thinking he was going to retire. But you saw him at the end, he said, 'I'm not leaving. I'm not f**king leaving.'"
Cejudo chimed in by proposing a rematch against Paulo Costa, whom Adesanya defeated via second-round TKO in September 2020. 'Triple C' said:
"Maybe, he gets a fun fight, does a rematch with Paulo 'Borrachinha'. Because, stylistically, he's done it already before."
Usman disagreed and asserted:
"Give him new blood. Give him something that's gonna be intriguing. There's intriguing fights right now. You've got [Nassourdine] Imavov. You've got Khamzat Chimaev."
Cejudo referenced the UFC middleweight rankings and opined that Nassourdine Imavov, a 29-year-old Dagestan-born French fighter, would be a good matchup for Israel Adesanya next:
"Top-five middleweights -- Sean Strickland at number one, Israel Adesanya who's number two, Robert Whittaker at number three. Imavov, yeah, you're right, at number four. I like that. I think screw everything that I just said. I'm with you, Kamaru."
Watch Usman and Cejudo discuss the topic below:
Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo disagree over potential light heavyweight matchups for Israel Adesanya
Kamaru Usman noted that Israel Adesanya and Nassourdine Imavov are both skilled strikers and their possible showdown would be intriguing. Usman named Paulo Costa, Brendan Allen, Marvin Vettori (whom Adesanya has defeated twice), Imavov, and Khamzat Chimaev as notable middleweight contenders.
'The Nigerian Nightmare' acknowledged Chimaev's star power, with him and Cejudo speculating about a potential Adesanya vs. Chimaev fight.
Furthermore, Cejudo weighed in by predicting that if Sean Strickland defeats UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis in their potential rematch next, then the UFC could book Adesanya to fight Strickland in a rematch.
Presently, Imavov is scheduled to fight Brendan Allen next month in Paris. Usman pointed out that if 'The Sniper' beats Allen, he could be matched up with Adesanya.
Usman and Cejudo indicated that Adesanya ought to be matched up with a fellow striker, if not Imavov then someone else. Cejudo highlighted that the former middleweight champ also has intriguing matchups at light heavyweight, perhaps against former UFC light heavyweight champions Jamahal Hill or Jiri Prochazka. Usman seemingly disapproved of the light heavyweight option.
Watch the podcast episode below (*comments about Adesanya's possible next fight at 18:00-22:37):