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Israel Adesanya, the former two-time UFC middleweight champion, will fight his first non-title bout in the promotion in six years at UFC Saudi Arabia. He will be up against Nassourdine Imavov, a surging contender in the division.
Ahead of the fight, Adesanya sent a heartfelt message to his fans through his FREESTYELBENDER YouTube channel. Adesanya began the message by stating he is fighting in Riyadh for himself, his friends, and his family. Visibly emotional, the Nigerian-born Kiwi urged fans to stick by him:
"Thank you to all my real fans. All the ones that always root for me no matter what, that slide for me no matter what, that have my back no matter what. I feel you guys. And again, I said I'm fighting this mainly for myself, but also for my family, my friends, my teammates, my gym."
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"But you guys, you guys feel me like nobody else. Because a lot of you, I've never even met or anything, and yet the way you make me feel with your words really affects me in a positive way. So, I really appreciate that. And again, just enjoy the ride with me. Stick with me. Stick with me," he added.
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The 35-year-old again thanked the fans and concluded the message by expressing his love for all of them.
Check out Israel Adesanya's message below (12:35):
Sean O'Malley's coach backs Israel Adesanya to claim victory at UFC Saudi Arabia
On Thursday, Tim Welch, the head coach of former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley, analyzed Israel Adesanya's fight against Nassourdine Imavov.
Even though Adesanya is coming off back-to-back losses, Welch backed Adesanya to beat Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia:
"Israel Adesanya, he's coming off two losses, one vs. Sean Strickland and one against Dricus [du Plessis], and now he's taking on Nassourdine Imavov. He is on a three-fight win streak. His confidence is going to be high. But Izzy, Izzy’s another level. He's on another level. So, I’m fired up for the fight, boys. It's going to be good. I think Izzy’s still got it. 100%. I think he’s still got it."
Adesanya is a slight betting favorite going into the fight against Imavov. However, anything can happen in a fight. But, Imavov does hold a TKO victory over Jarred Cannonier, whom Adesanya only managed to defeat via decision at UFC 276. Moreover, both Adesanya and Imavov lost to Sean Strickland via unanimous decision.
Check out Tim Welch's comments below (19:16):
