Dana White: Israel Adesanya’s next fight in the works, but it’s not Jon Jones or Paulo Costa

MMA News
Dana White: Israel Adesanya’s next fight in the works, but it’s not Jon Jones or Paulo Costa

Less than a month after he won the UFC middleweight title, Israel Adesanya is already progressing toward his next fight.

According to UFC president Dana White, the UFC and Adesanya are working on a deal for his next fight. But “The Last Stylebender” won’t be facing rival Paulo Costa.

In an interview with “The Schmo,” White revealed Costa is out for the foreseeable future after surgery. The promotion has decided to go in a different direction while Costa heals up.

“He had surgery on his bicep, so he’s out for eight months,” White said. “But we are working on something else with Israel right now.”

Adesanya and Costa have exchanged words on numerous occasions over the past few months. Immediately after he knocked out Robert Whittaker at UFC 243 in early October, Adesanya scaled the cage and flipped Costa dual middle fingers. A matchup between the two seemed inevitable.

With Costa on the shelf, could Adesanya’s next outing be a superfight against UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones? No, said White, who was quick to shoot down any talk of the two champions squaring off next.

“He just won the title,” White said. “To do a Jones superfight right now doesn’t make sense. There are guys in his own weight division that he could fight.”

Jones and Adesanya have verbally sparred for months dating back long before Adesanya won the middleweight title. On Twitter and through interviews, both fighters have hurled their fair share of jabs. The constant back-and-forth has riled up a large number of MMA fans, who want to see that fight happen.

Dana White: Israel Adesanya's next fight in the works, but it's not Jon Jones or Paulo Costa