Israel Adesanya is once again in a headlining spot, but this time with a lot more to lose than gain.
That’s how Dricus du Plessis sees it as Adesanya, currently No. 7 at 185 pounds in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, is set to face up-and-coming contender Joe Pyfer in the UFC Seattle main event on March 28. The 36-year-old Adesanya is in a career-worst slump coming off of consecutive losses to Nassourdine Imavov, Dricus du Plessis, and Sean Strickland. His most recent win came in April 2023.
Should Adesanya win, he’ll hold on to his top 10 spot; should he lose, it could signal a major shift in how fans view him. That’s why du Plessis respects his longtime rival so much for accepting the Pyfer fight.
“Just kudos to Adesanya for this,” du Plessis told Fight Forecast. “Going out there, giving a guy like Pyfer a chance. It’s not close in the rankings, it’s an exciting fight for fans and that just shows the quality of warrior that he is. Putting his reputation on the line to fight an up-and-coming guy that he doesn’t need to fight. He goes out there and he said, ‘I want exciting fights’ and this is an exciting fight.”
Pyfer made a name for himself with a memorable knockout on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022 to earn a UFC contract, then finished his first three UFC opponents. He fell short in a main event fight against Jack Hermansson, but has since rebounded with three more wins.
Even with Adesanya streaking in the opposite direction, du Plessis still warns Pyfer that “The Last Stylebender” is one of the most dangerous fighters in the division.
“If you’re fighting a guy like Israel Adesanya, you’ve got to know you have to be on your best,” Adesanya said. “Even though he’s on a [three-fight] skid, the fight with Imavov he was doing great in that fight and this is the fight game. He got clipped and that happened.
“We are former opponents and I was in there with him. That guy is as good as people think.”
With a successful career in both kickboxing and MMA, Adesanya doesn’t have much to prove and appears to still be competing primarily for the love of the game. Du Plessis doesn’t see any reason why Adesanya shouldn’t fight for as long as he wants to, assuming chasing titles is no longer a priority.
“I think for any fighter it’s really hard,” du Plessis said when asked about the possibility of Adesanya retiring. “I think it’s hard, we live for this and sometimes you need somebody to tell you, ‘Listen, it’s time.’ For him, I don’t think it’s time. I don’t think it’s time yet. We’ll see in this performance, but in terms of accomplishing things in the sport, that’s not where his mind’s at. Going for the belt, that’s not where his mind’s at. It’s probably not going to happen. I can almost guarantee it’s not going to happen because that’s not what his goals are.
“His goals right now is fighting the best guys that he can, the most exciting guys, and doing what he loves. That’s a special place to be because he has already done it all. He’s already in the Hall of Fame. He is one of the greatest to ever do this sport, so for him right now, enjoy the sport and do the thing you love and entertain the people like you always have.”
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