Israel Adesanya News

Cole Shelton - April 11, 2019

In the co-main event of UFC 236 this Saturday, Israel Adesanya is set to take on Kelvin Gastelum for the UFC’s interim middleweight title. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the fight. Although many think Adesanya will win, some just can’t count out Gastelum.

Chris Taylor - April 6, 2019

Kelvin Gastelum will take on Israel Adesanya for the UFC’s interim middleweight championship at next weekend’s UFC 236 event in Atlanta. Gastelum was originally slated to challenge current UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker back at UFC 232, but that bout fell through when “The Reaper” was forced to withdraw from the contest due to health reasons.

Cole Shelton - March 21, 2019

A common complaint UFC fans have is that there aren’t many huge MMA stars at the moment. It’s a recurring complaint, with Ronda Rousey leaving the spot, Brock Lesnar in the WWE and Conor McGregor fighting so infrequently. However, UFC President Dana White does not agree with these claims. Rather, he says there is a ton of up and coming prospects that will soon turn into stars.

Tom Taylor - March 15, 2019

Israel Adesanya is currently working on conquering the UFC middleweight division, as he’s set to battle Kelvin Gastelum for interim gold at UFC 236. From the sounds of it, however, there could be a move to light heavyweight division in his future, as he’s recently been flirting with the notion of super fight with reigning champ Jon Jones. Speaking to Submission Radio recently, Israel Adesanya said that this is a challenge he looks forward to.

Tom Taylor - March 12, 2019

For a period, middleweight destroyers Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa were expected to collide this spring. In a surprising twist, however, Romero was then matched up with Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza, leaving Costa without an opponent. Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on Monday, Romero stated that he heard Paulo Costa had been flagged for a potential United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) violation — the reason he’s apparently been pulled from this fight.

Cole Shelton - March 11, 2019

The rise of Israel Adesanya has drawn comparisons to the rise of Conor McGregor. The two took the UFC by storm and were both considered future champions from the early phases of their careers. Israel Adesanya agrees he shares some similarities with Conor McGregor, but assures they’re on different paths.

Tom Taylor - March 10, 2019

The UFC has dropped the official posters for two of its upcoming cards: UFC 236 and UFC Philadelphia. UFC Philadelphia goes down on March 30. The card will be headlined by a lightweight bloodletting between Edson Barboza and Justin Gaethje. Other highlights of the bill include a strawweight fight between Michelle Waterson and Karolina Kowalkiewicz, and a lightweight scrap between Ross Pearson and Desmond Green.

Tom Taylor - February 26, 2019

UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker recently shared his belief that, between Kelvin Gastelum and Israel Adesanya, who battle for the interim belt at UFC 236, Adesanya the easier matchup. Speaking on a recent edition of The MMA Hour, Israel Adesanya made a similar comment, explaining that he considers Whittaker a tougher fight than Gastelum.

Tom Taylor - February 24, 2019

UFC 236, which goes down on April 13 inside the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, is already coming together nicely. Earlier this month, we learned that the card will feature an interim middleweight title fight between top contenders Kelvin Gastelum and Israel Adesanya, and this weekend, we learned that it will also include an interim lightweight title fight between streaking contender Dustin Poirier and reigning featherweight champ Max Holloway. If things go according to plan, it will be the first card in UFC history to feature two interim title fights.

Chris Taylor - February 23, 2019

It is now official! Two UFC interim titles will be up for grabs when the octagon invades Atlanta on April 13 for the promotions UFC 236 event. In the main event of the evening, current UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway will move up to 155-pounds to take on Dustin Poirier for the promotions interim lightweight title.

James Lynch - February 21, 2019

Israel Adesanya has opened as a slight betting favorite against Kelvin Gastelum for their interim middleweight title fight at UFC 236. Oddsmaker Nick Kalikas of BetDSI opened “Stylebender” as a -185 favorite (bet $185 to win $100) against Gastelum +155 (bet $100 to win $155) ahead of their clash on Apr. 13.

Tom Taylor - February 21, 2019

Robert Whittaker was supposed to defend the UFC middleweight title against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 234 earlier this month. Unfortunately, the champion was forced out of the fight on the very day of the card, and rushed into the hospital with a collapsed hernia. This issue could keep Whittaker on the shelf for quite some time. Given that it’s already been close to a year since his last fight, the promotion has decided to create an interim middleweight title to keep the division moving in his stead. The interim title fight will occur at UFC 236 on April 13, when Gastelum battles undefeated contender Israel Adesanya.

Drake Riggs - February 19, 2019

After some recent speculation as the date draws closer, we now know the second bout for UFC 236 which takes place on April 13. ESPN has confirmed that at UFC 236 we will be treated to a middleweight title showdown… But it won’t be for the undisputed title.

Tom Taylor - February 14, 2019

On Saturday afternoon — mere hours before his scheduled fight with Kelvin Gastelum — UFC middleweight champ Robert Whittaker was rushed to the hospital for surgery as the result of a collapsed hernia. The champ is now facing a potentially lengthy recovery. Bad news for Gastelum, who is still waiting for his title shot, and surging contender Israel Adesanya, who also deserves a shot at gold. Luckily, Robert Whittaker has a suggestion for these two contenders, should they get bored while he recovers: fight Yoel Romero.

Chris Taylor - February 13, 2019

Undefeated UFC middleweight contender Israel Adesanya does not want to see the promotions 185-pound division held up by injured champ Robert Whittaker. Whittaker was supposed to defend his UFC middleweight championship against Kelvin Gastelum in the main event of UFC 234 this past weekend in Australia.

Tom Taylor - February 13, 2019

The official UFC rankings have been updated in the wake of last Saturday’s UFC 234 card, and as expected, Israel Adesanya has burst into the middleweight division’s top-5 on the strength of his decision defeat of the legend Anderson Silva. Elsewhere, the men’s flyweight division continues to be the picture of chaos, as many of the weight class’s top fighters have been cut by the promotion.

Tom Taylor - February 12, 2019

Last weekend, in the last-minute main event of UFC 234, former UFC middleweight champ and undeniable MMA legend Anderson Silva came up short in an exciting, three-round battle with surging contender Israel Adesanya. In the wake of this fight, Anderson Silva has made no secret of his respect and admiration for Adesanya. In fact, he even hopes to see the Nigeria-born New Zealander become a UFC champion in the future.

Drake Riggs - February 11, 2019

Criticism is always going to find its way to athletes in professional sports. Whether it be from fans or even peers. At UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia this past weekend, ‘The Last Stylebender’ Israel Adesanya headlined his first UFC pay-per-view event.