Every fighter experiences a decline, but when it happens at the best level of the game, the failings that result in it could actually have an excellent greater highlight.
That’s what coach Sayif Saud sees happening to former UFC middleweight champion and future UFC Hall of Famer Israel Adesanya, who saw his losing skid hit a career-worst three fights in a knockout loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Fight Night 250 this month.
After losing consecutive championship bouts to Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis, the once-longtime titleholder Adesanya (24-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) found himself in a distinct spot. His streak of 12 consecutive title fights was over and he was in a non-title bout for the primary time since 2019 against a surging contender in Imavov. He said all the correct things heading in, and began with a powerful first round. But then it fell apart.
Imavov landed a giant punch on Adesanya within the second round that rocked “The Last Stylebender.” He pounded and got the knockout finish in what was a breakthrough moment for his profession, however the post-fight narrative was firmly on Adesanya and what his future holds.
Saud, who’s the pinnacle coach at Fortis MMA and was an Analyst of the Yr nominee on the sixteenth annual World MMA Awards, saw this can be a natural progression of Adesanya’s profession. At 35 and with greater than 100 combat sports bouts on his record, Saud thinks Adesanya is experiencing the slightest fallout in what were once his strongest attributes.
“I have a look at that fight and just take into consideration how incredible Izzy has been and what he’s done,” Saud told MMA Junkie. “I see everybody and so they’re like sad. It’s kind like mourning this great fighter. But this happens to each fighter after a certain point, because they fight on the very elite level. The thing about these champions is once they get to that level, everybody you fight is on the best way up and is the best of the brand new breed or the brand new generation or whatever. Nassourdine is an excellent example of that. He’s 5 or 6 or seven years younger than Izzy, in his prime and hungry. It’s continually like being on the very tip of the sphere against essentially the most amount of danger, and the way long are you able to try this for?
“At 35 years old, in the event you’re only a hair slower, only a hair, similar to Roy Jones Jr. The guy was all reflexes. He would hit people and are available back and so they couldn’t even touch him. He got only a hair slower and that was the difference. So I feel that’s what we’re seeing with Izzy. I still think he looked really, really good within the fight. I feel he can beat tons of individuals. I feel he can beat Nassourdine in a fight. But with the style that he has and the best way that he strikes, in that division with the young guys coming up (it’s tough).”
Although Adesanya has yet to make a definitive statement about what his fighting future holds, his path to victories aren’t going to get any easier. Unless he takes a dramatic step down in competition, Saud said everyone who enters the octagon with Adesanya might be studying him closely and coming for his head on this vulnerable position.
Reigning champion Du Plessis said he thinks Adesanya doesn’t have one other title run in him, and Saud tends to agree we’re witnessing a turnover with the elite at 185 kilos.
“We see a giant shift coming within the middleweight division,” Saud said. “That was an example.”
To listen to more of Saud’s evaluation of Adesanya’s loss and future, take a look at his complete appearance on “The Bohnfire” podcast with MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn.
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