With options for an opponent apparently limited, Israel Adesanya offered a huge comeback later this year in his return to the UFC.
In the midst of a three-fight, Skid loses for the first time in his career, Israel Adesanya has been sidelined since his knockout defeat against Nassourdine Imavov earlier this year.
And hoping to land himself a rematch with fellow ex champion Sean Strickland then, Adesanya has so far failed in his attempt to entice the controversial star back to action.
However, everything is not lost – with a top challenger who offers Adesanya a route back to action – and a potential title costs.
Israel Adesanya offered enormous clash from Reinier de Ridder
The offer in question is driven by the Dutch striking Reinier de Ridder, who is fresh from his own victory over Robert Whittaker in Abu Dhabi last month.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
And hoping to close a shot on the belt prior to the return of Dricus du Plessis against the unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev later this month, De Ridder has a confrontation with City Kickboxing Maestro Adesanya in mind.
“He (Israel Adesanya) still has the best record, he defeated (Alex) Pereira in his last fight [sic]And he fights so elegantly, “De Ridder said in the fighting.
“For me this is a more important reason to fight instead of a man who demands it based on the fact that he just hates me,” De Ridder explained.
Despite his well-placed call from Adesanya, De Ridder, however, came under fire to select that specific enemy by an Octagon veteran.
Chael Sonnen wonders the range of Reinier de Ridder to Israel Adesanya
De Ridder focuses on a return in November – as part of a more than active year, has designs to fight on a stacked Madison Square Garden card, which may be the Welterweight debut of Islam Makhachev.
As far as Chael Sonen is concerned, De Ridder, however, chose the wrong choice when calling for Adesanya – which suggests that their rivalry has very little to no legs.
“He calls Israel Adesanya, but he became more specific,” Sonen said on his YouTube channel. “It was a great call, but it was the wrong guy.
“… And the only reason that is a problem is that beating Adesanya does not make you number one candidate. But there is also a representation that RDR (Reinier de Ridder) does not understand where he is.”
With his controversial victory on Whittaker, De Ridder cracked the middleweight top 5 and is currently only a place behind former two-time champion, Adesanya.