UFC Champion Israel Adesanya reveals why he wants his opponents to try to take him down
Israel Adesanya is perhaps the toughest fighter to figure out for any opponent in the UFC. While Israel Adesanya entered the UFC only in 2018, he has gone on to become the Middleweight Champion and has done so by keeping his streak intact.
Israel Adesanya is already entering into elite territory as the UFC Champion, and there's little doubt about the fact that he is the most prolific striker in MMA today. That shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, especially given that he had an extensive and successful Kickboxing career before entering the UFC.
What is surprising, however, is the fact that Israel Adesanya is so successful in his takedown defense. He has one of the best takedown defense rates in the UFC.
Ahead of his Light Heavyweight title fight against Jan Blachowicz, Israel Adesanya spoke to MMA Fighting and admitted that he wants his opponents to attempt more takedowns:
“I hope they start shooting on me more cause I want to choke somebody out,” Adesanya told MMA Fighting recently. “I mean people were shooting on me at the beginning of my UFC career, and then they realized, ‘We can’t be doing that, f**k it let’s strike, oh we can’t do that [either].’”
Israel Adesanya - who recently attained a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu - stated that he wants to use some of the tricks that he has:
“They should go back to shooting on me again, cause I’ve got some tricks that I want to use,” Adesanya said.
Who poses the biggest threat to Israel Adesanya on the ground?
Given that Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa were outstruck by Israel Adesanya, one would have imagined that Yoel Romero posed a threat on the ground. Instead, Romero's only few attempts at a takedown failed, and the fight played out in an underwhelming way.
Jan Blachowicz isn't the most prolific on the ground, but if Israel Adesanya does cross paths with Jon Jones, then that could be a big test for him. Jon Jones is an all-rounder and is one of only a few people who can claim to have successfully taken down Daniel Cormier.
It will be interesting to see, but given the route that Israel Adesanya is taking, it's hard to imagine him not crossing paths with a top-level grappler.