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This weekend at UFC 276, middleweight champion Israel Adesanya made the fifth successful defense of his title. He easily outpointed top contender Jared Cannonier in a less-than-thrilling bout.
While Israel Adesanya’s next title bout seems almost set in stone, it’s arguable that there is more than one option for ‘The Last Stylebender’ when it comes to selecting his next fight in the octagon.
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Whether Adesanya is looking to cement his legacy or test himself in a different way entirely is the key question. Either way, the striker’s next trip to the octagon could be a pivotal one.
Here are five potential opponents for Israel Adesanya following his latest victory.
#5. Israel Adesanya vs. Andre Muniz
If Israel Adesanya chooses to remain at 185lbs to continue to defend his UFC middleweight title, the most logical next opponent for him is Alex Pereira. This is something we shall discuss a little later.
However, if ‘Poatan’ is unable to make whatever date the UFC has planned for Adesanya’s next title bout, then an opponent who might be just as intriguing for ‘The Last Stylebender’ could be grappling ace Andre Muniz.
Everyone knows that Adesanya has probably the best striking game in the middleweight division, if not the UFC as a whole. However, his grappling skills haven’t quite been tested in the same way. If he were to fight Muniz, though, that could change.
A highly skilled Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Muniz is the only man to hold a submission win over the legendary Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza in MMA. His octagon record stands at an impressive 5-0. More to the point, he’s likely to enter the middleweight top ten next week thanks to his win over Uriah Hall.
Muniz doesn’t possess the kind of big name that would make a fight against Adesanya a major drawing card. However, he could definitely give him a difficult fight from a stylistic point of view, making him a viable opponent for ‘The Last Stylebender’ at some point.
#4. Israel Adesanya vs. Jiri Prochazka
Israel Adesanya fell short in his first attempt to become the UFC’s fifth double champion when he was defeated by then-light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz in 2021. However, since then, he’s reeled off three straight wins and seems to be head and shoulders above the competition at 185lbs.
With that in mind, why not let ‘The Last Stylebender’ have another attempt at claiming UFC gold at 205lbs by matching him with newly-minted light-heavyweight titleholder Jiri Prochazka?
The fight would definitely be an intriguing one on paper. It would pit the pinpoint accuracy of Adesanya against the wild, but no less dangerous, striking game of ‘Denisa’. Given the crazy action we saw in Prochazka’s bout with Glover Teixeira, anything could happen.
The UFC may well frown upon the idea of Adesanya moving up to 205lbs for a second attempt at the title there, especially as he largely disappointed in his clash with Blachowicz. However, they did let BJ Penn attempt a similar thing when he fought Georges St-Pierre for the welterweight title after losing to Matt Hughes a couple of years prior, so there is precedent for such a move.
At the end of the day, the UFC is all about putting on the most intriguing bouts for the fans. With no clear-cut top contender ready to face Prochazka right now, this fight might make more sense than it initially seems to on paper.
#3. Israel Adesanya vs. Colby Covington
Given their joint Nigerian heritage and apparent friendship, it seems highly unlikely that we’ll see a clash between Israel Adesanya and current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman any time soon, despite it sounding like an intriguing bout on paper.
However, could we instead see Usman’s bitter rival Colby Covington move up to 185lbs to challenge ‘The Last Stylebender’? It’d definitely be an interesting idea.
Covington is practically stuck in no man’s land at 170lbs right now. He seems to be the second-best fighter in the division, but his two losses to Usman are likely to prevent him from another title challenge in the near future.
Despite this, he is coming off a win over hated rival Jorge Masvidal. Furthermore, his ability to talk an insane amount of trash would mean that it’d be easy for the UFC to sell a grudge match between him and Adesanya.
More to the point, ‘Chaos’ possesses the kind of relentless pressure and wrestling game that could really threaten ‘The Last Stylebender’ from a stylistic point of view, making a potential clash between them a fascinating one.
It seems more likely that Covington will stick around at 170lbs for the time being, but if the UFC wants a left-field option, this could definitely work.
#2. Israel Adesanya vs. Jon Jones
If the UFC wants to give Israel Adesanya the biggest fight possible for his next trip to the octagon, then it’d be impossible for them to overlook a potential clash with former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Adesanya and ‘Bones’ have been sniping at one another on social media for years now. While Jones’ apparent plan to move up to heavyweight might make this a difficult fight to book right now, there could still be a chance that he’d be willing to cut weight to make it happen.
Jones hasn’t even fought in the octagon for well over two years now, but that still didn’t stop him throwing shade at Adesanya after his win over Jared Cannonier last night. He took a shot at ‘The Last Stylebender’ for making references to the Disney movie Frozen in an insulting tweet.
Admittedly, this possible fight doesn’t carry the same intrigue that it once did, largely because we saw Adesanya lose to Jan Blachowicz, suggesting that he probably wouldn’t stand a chance of beating Jones if it came to it.
However, the build to a fight between these two megastars would still be incredible to watch, meaning that the UFC should probably not completely overlook it just yet.
#1. Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira
The most intriguing potential opponent for Israel Adesanya after his win over Jared Cannonier – and the one that the UFC seems most likely to run with – is undoubtedly striking sensation Alex Pereira.
‘Poatan’ has only fought three times in the octagon, defeating Andreas Michailidis, Bruno Silva and, most recently, Sean Strickland. Despite his lack of experience, a fight between him and ‘The Last Stylebender’ would undoubtedly be huge.
Firstly, Pereira’s win over Strickland not only snapped one of the lengthiest winning streaks in the middleweight division – ‘Tarzan’ had won his last six bouts – but should also elevate him into the top five, given Strickland was ranked No.4 prior to the bout.
Secondly, and most importantly, the Brazilian holds two victories over Adesanya – including one via knockout – from their kickboxing days, something that could give him an important psychological edge in a potential title bout.
Overall, Adesanya is likely to be desperate to avenge those losses inside the octagon. Pereira, meanwhile, might actually be the fighter to give him a test on the feet after the likes of Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker failed to do so.
There’s a chance that this could, in fact, be one of the best striking bouts in MMA history. With any luck, the UFC will be able to put it together as soon as they possibly can – perhaps even in late 2022.
