Israel Adesanya reflects on knockout loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia, hints at taking time off: "Now I'm forced to"

Israel Adesanya plans to "relax first" before deciding what's next in his fighting career.

Earlier today, Adesanya attempted to bounce back from consecutive losses against Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis. The former middleweight champion ultimately came up short in the UFC Saudi Arabia main event, suffering a second-round TKO loss against Nassourdine Imavov.

Shortly after the disappointing defeat, Adesanya appeared in a backstage interview with ESPN MMA. On being asked about what's next, he said:

"I don't know [what's next for me]. I'll have to chill and then think about things. I will relax first for a little bit, just help the teammates who have fights coming up. Yeah, I'll see what I want to do. I was going to do that anyway, but now I'm forced to. Shoutout to Nassourdine for that."

Adesanya's last win was a second-round knockout against Alex Pereira in April 2023. Since then, 'The Last Stylebender' has endured world-title defeats against Sean Strickland (unanimous decision) and Dricus du Plessis (fourth-round submission).

Adesanya's latest loss against Imavov has raised more questions about how much gas is left in the tank for his fighting career.

Check out Israel Adesanya's reaction to his loss against Imavov below:

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Dana White reacts to Nassourdine Imavov potentially fighting Khamzat Chimaev after Israel Adesanya win

UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis called for a title defense against Khamzat Chimaev after dethroning Israel Adesanya. Instead, Dana White and the promotional officials matched him up in a rematch against Sean Strickland, which goes down in the UFC 312 main event on Feb. 8.

Chimaev seemed to be next in line for a title shot following Du Plessis vs. Strickland 2. With that said, Nassourdine Imavov has slightly changed the division's title picture due to his impressive performance against Adesanya.

During the UFC Saudia Arabia post-event press conference, White was asked about potentially booking Chimaev vs. Imavov. He responded by saying:

"The fight [between Imavov and Adesanya] just happened 30 minutes ago. I don't know what we're going to do yet. There's a lot of possibilities and, yes, it's definitely one of them."

Imavov's finish against Adesanya has extended his winning streak to four fights (Roman Dolidze, Jared Cannonier, Brendan Allen, and Adesanya). The Frenchman has impressed many fans with his evolution since first fighting in the UFC in October 2020.

Check out Dana White's response to the idea of booking Chimaev vs. Imavov below: