Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya expects to run things back with Sean Strickland eventually.
Adesanya (24-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) lost the title to Strickland (28-6 MMA, 15-6 UFC) this past September in the UFC 293 headliner. Strickland has since lost the belt to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297, and Adesanya finds himself back in the title picture.
Du Plessis (21-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) called out Adesanya, but according to “The Stylebender,” Du Plessis turned down the offer to headline UFC 300 on April 13 against him. Adesanya is currently focused on Du Plessis but thinks a rematch with Strickland is on the horizon.
“This took me six years to accomplish,” Adesanya said on avenging his loss to Alex Pereira on “This Past Weekend” w/ Theo Von. “With Strickland, it won’t take me that long. Let me just get through DDP (Du Plessis) first. Let me handle – I look to the next fight. I look ahead, like a little peek at the future. But I don’t try and focus on it.
“I just know the Strickland fight will come back around. I’m in a good place now health-wise, mentally, and I know exactly what happened in that fight that just wasn’t for me. He’s a great fighter. He’s also a good champion. What a reign. I mean, he did what he did. He did what he did. Look, even the way he beat me, it was spectacular. It was his moment.”
Adesanya was gracious in defeat to Strickland but is eager to get that loss back.
“That was his night,” Adesanya said. “He just fought the perfect fight no matter what. I made no excuses. I gave it to him. But again, like I say, I’m a patient motherf*cker. I take my time. I reassess and, yeah, I go for what I want.”
Israel Adesanya confident he’ll rematch Sean Strickland someday: ‘I’m a patient motherf*cker’