Israel Adesanya recently broke down the much-anticipated UFC 274 headliner between Charles Oliveira and Justin Gaethje. The UFC middleweight champion also offered a prediction for the co-main event.
In a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Adesanya discussed this weekend's main event, which will see former interim titleholder Gaethje challenge reigning 155-pound king Oliveira for the lightweight gold. Here's what 'The Last Stylebender' said:
"Charles is on a roll right now. He's also a guy that has been through the ups and downs of the game when it comes to wins and losses and now he's just on a roll. Gaethje - beast, gangster, just put on this earth to fight and that's what he does. He's going to take it to Oliveira. Gaethje leg kicks differently, a key to this fight."
Adesanya pointed out that Gaethje's calf kicks and lethal strikes could play a huge factor in the outcome of the fight. The UFC middleweight champion also called attention to the Brazilian's elite grappling skills, suggesting that Gaethje might be in for a rude awakening should he get caught in any of the champ's submissions.
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The Nigerian-New Zealander then weighed in on the co-main event of UFC 274, which will see Rose Namajunas put her strawweight title on the line against Carla Esparza in a rematch eight years in the making. Adesanya picked Namajunas to retain the title and opined that her evolution since the first fight could give her a massive edge in their second meeting this Saturday.
Catch Israel Adesanya's UFC 274 predictions in the video below:
Israel Adesanya called out by Khamzat Chimaev again
Khamzat Chimaev seems destined to fight for the title soon, likely after another trip to the octagon. Despite currently plying his trade at 170 pounds, the undefeated star recently called for a fight against either middleweight champion Israel Adesanya or welterweight king Kamaru Usman.
Taking to his Twitter handle, 'Borz' wrote:
"Who wants to fight ? @stylebender @USMAN84kg."
So far, Chimaev has focused more of his attention on the 170-pound division as opposed to 185 pounds. With his latest win over former welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns, 'Borz' is tipped to fight for the divisional crown at some point in the future rather than the middleweight gold.
With that said, it seems Chimaev will have to go through 'The Nigerian Nightmare' before booking an octagon meeting with 'The Last Stylebender'.
Israel Adesanya is expected to face No.2-ranked middleweight contender Jared Cannonier in his next UFC appearance. 'The Killa Gorilla' seemingly earned a title shot with a win over Derek Brunson in February.