"They're not built like us" - Israel Adesanya discusses Dricus du Plessis turning down potential UFC 300 main event title clash
Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya addressed the decision of the reigning champion Dricus du Plessis to turn down a matchup in the main event of UFC 300.
Adesanya revealed that he was made aware of the UFC 300 main event featuring Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill just minutes before it was announced and was seemingly preparing to take on Du Plessis.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Adesanya compared Du Plessis to two former champions, his teammate Alexander Volkanovski and good friend Kamaru Usman. He stated that they were frequent in their title defenses.
"They're not built like us. It's different... I wasn't even fully healed. I'm taking time off. And when the opportunity presented itself, I was like, 'F**k it's history. This is monumental, UFC 300. F*****g let's do it.' But again, they're not built like us. Myself, Alex Volkanovski, Kamaru Usman. When we were champion, just f**k it, just fight. F**k the belt. I got belts at home."
'The Last Stylebender' continued on his ambition to reclaim the middleweight title:
"Even fans whenever they see me now, they go, 'Oh man I hope you get that belt back.' B***h, they're at the house, I'm a two-time middleweight champion. Soon to be three. It's at the house. It's not about the belt. I'm coming for the heads. Right now, it's about fighting while you can. But he's young, he's done what he’s done, got this far, become champion so good on him. But yeah, it is what it is, you wanna hold on to that belt and be cozy. That's your prerogative. But yeah, when we were doing it, f**k the belt. It's about fighting the best and that’s it."
Check out Israel Adesanya's full comments below:
Israel Adesanya on potentially facing Khamzat Chimaev – 'I want to test that'
Israel Adesanya named middleweight contender Khamzat Chimaev as one of the fighters he wants to take on in the future.
Chimaev will fight Robert Whittaker in his next fight at the upcoming UFC card in Saudi Arabia. Adesanya previewed the fight and then stated that he would like to test 'Borz'.
He said:
"I like that [Whittaker vs. Chimaev], because I want to see what he can do. I’m excited. I like fights like that. I want to see what he can do actually at middleweight against a tough guy... If Khamzat beats Rob, I want to test that."
Adesanya also backed his friend Kamaru Usman to have gotten the better of Chimaev if their matchup had been five rounds.
Check out Israel Adesanya's comments on Khamzat Chimaev (40:07):