We are the underdogs - Israel Adesanya's coach explains why the odds favor Jan Blachowicz
Israel Adesanya's coach Eugene Bareman shared his thoughts on the upcoming fight against Jan Blachowicz in a recent interview with with Submission Radio. Bareman suggested that this would be Stylebender's hardest fight to date:
This is Israel's hardest fight. By quite a bit, I think this is a jump up from any of the previous challenges. For all intents and purposes, within our camp, we are building ourselves as the underdogs. And we are doing that based on the fact that we are giving away this big size and weight advantage that we sometimes have in our favor. Now we are giving away, so, its just a very hard, what we are about to attempt here, people don't understand is that it is a very difficult endeavor and a very risky one. For all us coaches and Israel (Adesanya), it, makes the hair on the back of our neck stand up. It is a true true challenge and it's a hefty one. It is a scary one.
He also shared that they have had a great camp so far and have incorporated a new breathing coach for Israel Adesnaya. They claim to have invested money, time and research into the breathing side of the game. He believes this will give Israel Adesnaya a distinct advantange in terms of recovery between the rounds.
Watch the full video here:
UFC 259 - Israel Adesanya vs Jan Blachowicz:
UFC 259 is scheduled for March 6th when the light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz is set to headline the UFC 259 pay-per-view against Israel Adesanya. In an interview with Full Mount MMA, Blachowicz acknowledged Israel Adesanya's striking style and praised him for his stand up game. Blachowicz is ready to grapple with Israel Adesanya, if required. However, the light heavyweight champion has made it clear that he does not want a decision victory.
Israel Adensya is looking to become one of the few fighters to hold belts at two weight divisions at the same time. Adesanya, who normally fights at middleweight, has claimed that although he is moving up in weight class, he does not want to add too much weight for the fight and will remain between 190 to 200 pounds.
Jan Blachowicz is currently ranked No.15 in UFC's overall pound-for-pound rankings, while Israel Adesanya is ranked No. 3. That being said, the betting odds seem to be in Adesanya's favor.