Israel Adesanya is no doubt a polarizing figure. Since his arrival in the UFC, ‘The Last Stylebender’ has garnered a stalwart following. However, the last couple of years has seen his supporters, maybe switch allegiances.
Adesanya is an entertainer. There are no two ways about it. From the moment he first stepped foot in the UFC, the Nigerian-Kiwi has made headlines. A big part of this is his beguiling personality.
The first two years, through his dominance, saw the 33-year-old build a strong fanbase. However, the past three years have seen all his hard work come crashing down. In an interesting turn of events, his vast patronage has apparently left his side.
A large part of this is accredited to his recent fights, while the other part of it is down to his personality. Using that as a basis, the past couple of years have seen his fans turn on him.
Citing that his fights against Romero, Jared Cannonier, the couple of rematches with Marvin Vettori and Whittaker have all been the same. Let’s delve into this.
Also read: “I’m Prepared To Die”: When Israel Adesanya Was Wiling To Lay His Life Down Inside the UFC Octagon
Have the fans of Israel Adesanya abandoned him?
‘Izzy’, became a reputable figure in 2018, when he dismantled top UFC contender Derek Brunson in spectacular fashion. The following year, he put on an enthralling fight with his idol, and arguably the greatest UFC Middleweight champion, Anderson Silva.
Then came the biggest moment of his career, when in 2019 he struck gold, in a war with Kelvin Gastelum for the interim UFC Middleweight championship. If this wasn’t enough, the same year, he unified the belts, knocking out Robert Whittaker on his home-turf.
In doing so he asserted himself as the ‘Top Dawg’. So where did it all go wrong for Adesanya? The answer? His first title defense.
In 2020, in what would be his first title defense, the UFC Middleweight champion was slated to take on the ‘Soldier of God’, Yoel Romero.
The bout did not deliver for all the hype it created. A big reason for that was due to Romero’s strategy of not going forward and attacking the champion.
He instead opted to put his guard up, inviting Adesanya to guard him. Being a counter-striker himself, running the risk of doing so against someone as hard as a hitter as Romero, the risk-reward ratio did not rationalize with ‘Izzy’. As such the contest was a bore.
Also read: Who Has Israel Adesanya Lost to in the UFC?
Is ‘Izzy’ to blame for these monotonous bouts?
As much as you can dislike him or hate him, you cannot deny the fact that he is one of the most formidable champions that the UFC has had. The reason his contests are monotonous is because of his superlative striking.
His opponents know that once they engage with him in an exchange, being the superior counter-striker, they can get knocked out at any point in time. Which is why they take the regressive approach of inviting him in to attack.
And that is where his fight IQ prevails. With the wealth of knowledge he possesses, Adesanya is aware, he is just required to defend his title, and not fall into their traps.
However, with that being said, we just might see a new version of Adesanya, in his upcoming fight with Alex Pereira.
