"It was divine intervention" - Israel Adesanya details how chance encounter with Jon Jones happened; dismisses 'fake interaction' theory

Israel Adesanya has opened up about his encounter with fellow MMA icon Jon Jones. For years, Adesanya and Jones were involved in a heated feud with one another, time and again exchanging jibes on social media.

Adesanya, who primarily competes at middleweight, had often expressed interest in moving up in weight to face then-UFC light heavyweight champion Jones a few years back. 'Bones' too expressed interest in fighting Adesanya at light heavyweight.

However, Jones vacated the UFC light heavyweight title in August 2020 and started bulking up for a move to the heavyweight division. Adesanya even hinted at moving to heavyweight to fight Jones. Regardless, their grudge match didn't materialize.

Jones ended his three-year MMA hiatus this year, beating Ciryl Gane to capture the UFC heavyweight title. Meanwhile, Adesanya still competes at middleweight and is the current UFC middleweight champion. Moreover, Adesanya lauded Jones after the latter won the heavyweight title.

Both fighters ran into each other at a Las Vegas hotel during the UFC's International Fight Week earlier this month. Adesanya subsequently posted a video of their meeting to his FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel. The video featured 'The Last Stylebender' and 'Bones' respectfully talking to and playfully sparring with each other.

In a video posted to the FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel, Israel Adesanya addressed the speculation that his meeting with Jon Jones was pre-planned. He indicated all the places he could've been at the time; he simply happened to be at the bar where Jones was present. Adesanya stated:

"I said it's no one's business. Like, when I posted about it, I was like, it's between me and him. That's it. But it definitely wasn't a fake encounter. I think it was divine intervention. I honestly do because I feel like there are so many timelines that could have ended up just differently."

Additionally, he confirmed that his beef with Jones has been squashed. Adesanya further indicated that he believes their meeting was a divine intervention because it gave several fans a heartwarming feeling, as evidenced by the positive comments on his YouTube video with Jones.

Moreover, hinting that he could soon train with 'Bones', Adesanya said:

"Yeah, definitely. Already, it's in the works. It'll happen."

Catch Israel Adesanya's comments below (10:36):

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What's next for UFC megastars Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones?

Israel Adesanya's most recent fight witnessed him reclaim the UFC middleweight title by defeating longtime rival Alex Pereira via second-round KO in April 2023. It's believed that Adesanya is likely to defend his title against rising middleweight star Dricus du Plessis at the UFC 293 event in Sydney, Australia, on September 10th, 2023.

Meanwhile, Jon Jones' last fight saw him win the vacant UFC heavyweight title by beating Ciryl Gane via first-round submission in March 2023. Jones has been booked to defend his title against former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, USA, on November 11th, 2023.