Israel Adesanya reveals which fight made him take notice of Georges St-Pierre
Over the years, Israel Adesanya has made it known that he has been following in the footsteps of his idol, former middleweight champion Anderson Silva. However, Adesanya is equally aware of Georges St-Pierre's contribution to the sport.
During a recent conversation on the True Geordie Podcast, Adesanya stated that he has always respected GSP's skills and was a fan of his style inside the octagon.
'The Last Stylebender' mentioned that St-Pierre's fight against Carlos Condit initially made him notice the former UFC middleweight and welterweight champion.
"I was always a Silva guy, so I was never the biggest GSP stan but I respected his skills and I was a fan of his fighting style. So, I think the one that really made me take notice that made me like, 'Okay, this guy is legit,' was the Carlos Condit fight. How he took the head kick and then came back and then dominated Carlos."
Check out Adesanya's full interview on the True Geordie Podcast below:
Israel Adesanya provided his thoughts on UFC welterweight Khamzat Chimaev
During the same interaction, Israel Adesanya provided his thoughts on rising UFC sensation Khamzat Chimaev. 'Borz', who has competed in the UFC's middleweight division in the past, took to Twitter to put Adesanya on notice earlier this month.
'The Last Stylebender' compared Chimaev's rise to that of Paulo Costa, who was finished by Adesanya at UFC 253. The reigning UFC middleweight champion said:
"I wanted to fight this guy [Costa] when he was this Adonis and put him on a pedestal. Like, 'Listen, I want to fight this guy. I want to f*** him up.' I feel like that's the same thing with Chimaev right now. Everyone's doing the same thing and riding off that energy. I like when people wake that side of me up. It's in there. I know it's in there, my dark side. I just don't tap into it because I can't live in that place for too long."
Adesanya is coming off a win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 271. The champion is expected to defend his title against Jared Cannonier next.