Israel Adesanya is visibly upset that he won’t have the chance to resolve his issues with Dricus du Plessis this year. ‘The Last Stylebender’ was anticipated to be the main attraction against Du Plessis at UFC 293 in Sydney on September 10. Unfortunately, Stillknocks won’t be facing Israel Adesanya due to an injury, which is disappointing news.
As a result, there’s speculation that Sean Strickland will be the one to take on Israel Adesanya at UFC 293. The UFC officials are swift in action and have already begun searching for Middleweights to replace Du Plessis in the lineup.
Alex Pereira picks Strickland as tougher opponent for Adesanya
According to Alex Pereira, he believes Sean Strickland has the potential to dethrone Israel Adesanya. Strickland might have the opportunity to challenge Adesanya for the middleweight title at UFC 293 on September 9 in Sydney.
Pereira previously defeated Adesanya in a knockout at UFC 281, though Israel later avenged the loss and reclaimed the belt with a knockout victory at UFC 287. Pereira’s success showed that Israel is not unbeatable at 185 pounds, and he sees Strickland as a strong contender who could potentially cause an upset.
“Fighting Israel Adesanya is always a hard fight, but he showed that he can be beaten,” Pereira said at Wednesday’s UFC 291 media day. “Sean Strickland, he has a chance. Different game plans are hard. But if anyone has a chance against Adesanya, that’ll be Sean Strickland. But it’s still a hard fight.”
Israel Adesanya aims brutal rant at Dricus du Plessis
The New Zealand fighter of Nigerian origin has been annoyed by Du Plessis, who questioned his African representation, along with former champions Francis Ngannou and Kamaru Usman. His anger has intensified further as du Plessis declined to fight him at UFC 293.
“I don’t even know how to start this, but ‘Dricus du P****,’ you f****** b****,” Adesanya said in a video shared on his social media platforms. [Du Plessis said], ‘Oh, all he had to do is put some gloves [on], I was ready to go again.’ No, you weren’t, you’re a b****. That’s why you’re not taking this fight.
“Your foot’s sore. N*****, my knee was jacked, too, from my last fight. Guess what I did? I showed up because that’s what a f****** champion does. Championship-calibre, built differently. A lot of you fighters talk about, ‘Oh I’ll fight anyone, anywhere, anytime.’ No, you won’t. I do. Alex Volkanovski does. We’re built different.”
I will say it is wild they are having a card like that and don't have a headline 6 weeks out. Someone at the ufc really dropped the ball on this…
I offered. Best I could do. Maybe we can just have a parking lot event after for the aussies. https://t.co/NMWIJZwhbS
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) July 26, 2023
Although the UFC has not officially announced Adesanya’s opponent for this September, it is expected that the announcement will be made soon, possibly before another event in London scheduled for Saturday.
What are your thoughts regarding this? Let us know in the comment section below.
