"Go up and fight your African brother" - Henry Cejudo wants Kamaru Usman to challenge Israel Adesanya, claims he has 'perfect style' to beat the middleweight champ
Henry Cejudo believes Kamaru Usman should move up to 185 pounds and defeat middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya to become a two-division champion.
During the latest edition of The Triple C and Schmo Show, former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo and The Schmo praised Kamaru Usman for his impressive win at UFC 268. He then explained what Usman needed to do to be considered the MMA GOAT: beat Israel Adesanya.
He stated what a middleweight belt would do for Usman's legacy, saying:
“I’m sure if it’s the African pride, I kind of get that, but I don’t get that. Actually, as a matter of fact, I really don’t get that. Because to me, it’s all about legacy. Somebody else in the near future is going to be able to go through the same run that Kamaru Usman did. But the difference is that can you win a second belt? And can you defend that second belt? And that’s what I want from ‘The Nigerian Nightmare.’ I want him to go up. I want him to fight ‘Izzy.’ I just believe he has a perfect style to beat somebody like ‘Izzy’ because he has wrestling.”
Cejudo further explained why he thinks Usman should go up to middleweight and face Israel Adesanya:
“You’ve already lapped the [welterweight] division, Kamaru Usman. You’ve already lapped. You’ve already beat Colby [Covington] twice. You’ve already beat [Jorge] Masvidal a couple times too. I mean, the winner of Masvidal and [Leon] Edwards, I mean, you’re gonna beat Edwards again. There’s only one take in my side, and that’s saying go up and fight your African brother [Israel Adesanya]. Because this is about legacy.”
You can watch Henry Cejudo and The Schmo’s conversation in the video below:
A potential Kamaru Usman vs. Israel Adesanya super-fight could be delayed due to Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev
Kamaru Usman was initially hesitant about moving up a weight class and fighting Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title. Nevertheless, Usman recently revealed that if the UFC were to throw $100 million at them, the fight could possibly come to fruition.
However, if Leon Edwards manages to beat Jorge Masvidal at UFC 269 on December 11, the consensus is that Edwards will face Kamaru Usman in a rematch for the welterweight title next. Moreover, a much-discussed matchup against Russian-born Swedish grappling savant Khamzat Chimaev also looms on the horizon for Usman.
Presently, Kamaru Usman’s next opponent and comeback date are yet to be revealed. Considering the aforementioned variables at play, it seems unlikely that Usman will face Adesanya anytime soon.
Moreover, Israel Adesanya is scheduled to defend his UFC middleweight title against Robert Whittaker at UFC 271 on February 12, 2022.
Com Ngannou X Gane no PPV de janeiro, UFC agora está perto de fechar a revanche entre Israel Adesanya X Robert Whittaker para 12 de fevereiro, no UFC 271. Luta de Jacob Malkoun (companheiro de treino de Whittaker) contra AJ Dobson foi transferida para a mesma data. #feedmma