Israel Adesanya relinquished the UFC middleweight title in September 2022, losing to Sean Strickland. Following the defeat, Adesanya elected to take an extended sabbatical from competition to rest and recuperate. While stating his intention not to return to fighting until 2027, Adesanya has remained active in training.
This week, the former champion published a video to his YouTube channel alongside Craig Jones, a prominent figure in contemporary grappling. In the video, Adesanya is seen training grappling with Jones at an unusually fast pace, a side of Adesanya’s game not often visible to fans.
Like his primary rival Alex Poatan, Adesanya’s background is in striking martial arts, where he has achieved great success. In MMA, the Nigerian fighter established himself as the standard bearer of the middleweight division during his title reign, defending the belt with dominance over 11 consecutive bouts. At 34 years old, Adesanya maintains an impressive professional record of 24 wins against just 3 losses.
Check out the video below:
