Israel Adesanya reclaimed the middleweight title at UFC 287 with a stunning KO victory over Alex Pereira.
‘The Last Stylebender’ refrained from calling out anyone following his bout, but did express his desire to fight a “certain” middleweight in South Africa. Adesanya’s dominance over the middleweight division has resulted in a lack of new contenders, as he has beaten every fighter ranked in the top five of the division at least once.
To determine the his next opponent, the UFC announced a bout between Dricus du Plessis and Robert Whittaker, set to take place at UFC 290.
Alex Pereira recently shared his thoughts on the matchup, as well as what a victory for Du Plessis would mean. ‘Poatan’ stated that it would be “impossible” for the South African to defeat Israel Adesanya, and said this:
“[Du Plessis] is a fighter who at the end of the first round was very tired. So how will a guy like that fight [for] five rounds against [Whittaker]. If he wins, it would be Adesanya [next]. I think [it’s] impossible… Let’s talk about it Du Plessis wins [against Whittaker]. I think it will be a massacre. Adesanya knows it. He wants to make history. He wants to make an easy fight…”
Israel Adesanya replied to Du Plessis’ post last month to win his bout aagainst Whittaker, which would help the bout between the two come to fruition.