Israel Adesanya was brutally knocked out by Nassourdine Imavov on Saturday night (Image: Zuffa LLC)
Israel Adesanya, the former two-time middleweight champion, has indicated he will be taking a step back to reassess his career after suffering another defeat in the octagon.
Competing in his first non-title bout since February 2019 against Nassourdine Imavov on Saturday night, Adesanya initially showed glimpses of his renowned prowess, fending off takedowns and delivering sharp counters in the opening round. However, an eye poke in the second round led to a hasty resumption of the fight, culminating in Adesanya being floored by a powerful right hand just 10 seconds later. This latest setback marks his fourth loss in five fights, leaving the UFC legend contemplating his next move.
Post-fight, Adesanya spoke with ESPN, expressing his need for reflection: “I’ll have to chill and then think about things,” he said. “I’ll relax first for a little bit, just help the teammates who have fights coming up, then see what I want to do. I was going to do that anyway but now I’m forced to – shout-out to Nassourdine for that.”
Later that evening, Adesanya took to social media to share a video of himself reviewing the fight, accompanied by the caption: “As real as it gets – UFC. Rolled the dice… snake eyes. I’ll be back, gone to get some milk.”
Reflecting on his defeat, Adesanya mused over the decisions he made leading up to the knockout. “He must be excited to beat a guy like me. I felt good,” he admitted. “In round one, I was in control of everything. In hindsight, maybe I should have taken some time [after the eye-poke] – I just didn’t want him to rest because I knew he was tired, so I didn’t want him to rest. But again, [hindsight is] 20/20.”
Following the event in Riyadh, UFC chief Dana White expressed his admiration for the former champion’s performance. He stated: “I thought Izzy looked incredible right up until he got caught. “He was picking him apart, busting him up on the outside. His takedown defence was incredible. He was chopping that calf kick the whole first round. He couldn’t have had a better first round and then he got caught.