Rafael Cordeiro thinks Israel Adesanya’s mindset is what makes him unique as a fighter.
A couple of Cordeiro’s fighters have fallen short to UFC middleweight champion Adesanya. Marvin Vettori has lost to him twice, and Kelvin Gastelum was outlasted in a barnburner at UFC 236.
As skilled as Adesanya (22-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) has proven to be in the octagon, the Kings MMA head coach is more impressed by “The Stylebender’s” fight IQ.
“He’s a tough guy,” Cordeiro said in an interview with “The Schmo.” “We lost some fights against him. His mental (game), I believe – his mental makes a lot of difference. His technique is good, but his mental is better than his technique. He has high IQ inside the octagon. I believe this makes the difference between him and a lot of fighters. But he’s not unbreakable. In the future, for sure, we’re going to find a way to beat him.”
Since losing to Adesanya for a second time in a title fight at UFC 263 in June 2021, Vettori (18-4-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) has rebounded with a unanimous decision win over Paulo Costa at UFC Fight Night 196. He is expected to meet former champion Robert Whittaker on Sept. 3 in Paris, and with an impressive win, Cordeiro thinks Vettori could end up with another title shot.
“Everything depends on our next performance,” Cordeiro said. “We know the game. We know have to put something like, ‘Wow,’ to fight for the belt right after. But we never know. We’re going to be ready to put a great show, as always. Marvin is a tough kid. He proved his skills against everybody.”
