Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya sought the help of a former foe while preparing for UFC Saudi Arabia.
Israel Adesanya is focused on his upcoming Octagon return against Nassourdine Imavov in the UFC Saudi Arabia main event next month. He returns to the cage for the first time since falling to UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305.
After initially spending a long break, Adesanya doesn't waste much time returning to the cage in hopes of another title chase. An impressive performance against Imavov could earn him a No. 1 fight at worst, or a shot at the winner of Du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland 2.
In the meantime, Adesanya has dramatically changed his regimen leading up to the Imavov fight. He has brought in several new training partners for this fight camp, including the man he defeated earlier in his career to become a UFC champion.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
'Chama'…UFC fans react to Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker teaming up
In a recent Instagram post, Adesanya revealed he is teaming up with former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker ahead of his Octagon return.
“New year, new friends,” Adesanya posted along with training footage of him and Whittaker.
Adesanya and Whittaker fought twice during their careers at UFC 243 and UFC 271. After Adesanya knocked out Whittaker to dethrone the middleweight title holder at UFC 243, their second fight was much more competitive, as Adesanya walked away with a closely contested unanimous decision.
Whittaker, like Adesanya, is looking to get back on track after a tough loss in his last fight. He suffered a submission loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308 after wild victories over Ikram Aliskerov and Paulo Costa last year.
It didn't take long for fans/experts, along with some of Adesanya's fighting peers, to give their opinions on his new training partner.
“Chama,” Alex Pereira noted.
“Now we need a buddy cop movie,” said UFC analyst Laura Sanko.
Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker squash past beef before return
At the time of writing, Whittaker's UFC return has not yet been booked as he plots his comeback later this year. He and Adesanya, after years of occupying the top two spots in the UFC middleweight division, are now on the outside looking into the title picture.
Before the loss to du Plessis at UFC 305, Adesanya suffered a stunning loss to Strickland at UFC 293, marking the first time in his MMA career that he has lost back-to-back fights.
Adesanya and Whittaker had some bad blood ahead of their first matchup at UFC 243 in Melbourne. Since then, a mutual respect has developed between the two middleweight greats, and both are strong candidates for the UFC Hall of Fame.
In the meantime, Adesanya and Whittaker are working hard to get their careers back on track as they look to put aside their past rivalry. Whether their time training together pays off remains to be seen, but either way, it's a cool moment for fight fans to witness.
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