Yoel Romero believes Israel Adesanya should have taken more time off before his UFC return last month.
Once undefeated with a 20-0 record, former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya is currently experiencing a three-fight losing streak. After defeating Alex Pereira in the UFC, Adesanya lost his title to Sean Strickland by decision in 2023.
Adesanya’s situation worsened with consecutive losses to champion Dricus du Plessis and top contender Nassourdine Imavov.
Adesanya was knocked out by Imavov in February, just five and a half months after his first career submission loss to du Plessis the previous year.
Yoel Romero Suggests Adesanya ‘Needed Time’ After Defeats
Israel Adesanya is known for his active fight schedule. He was one of the most active UFC champions recently, defending his title three times in 2022 alone.
The eleven-month gap between his fights with Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis was the longest break Adesanya has had in the UFC.
Yoel Romero, a former opponent of Adesanya, thinks Adesanya made a mistake by returning to the Octagon too quickly after his losses.
“Israel needed time,” Romero said regarding Adesanya’s losing streak. “He needed to rest a bit. I think he needs to rest because of too much damage.”
“But the problem is the UFC doesn’t give you time. When the UFC calls, you have to accept because of the contract…”
Since joining the UFC in 2018, Adesanya has fought 18 times, facing opponents like Robert Whittaker (twice), Alex Pereira (twice), Anderson Silva, and Yoel Romero, whom he defeated by decision in 2020.
Yoel Romero Cautions Israel Adesanya Against Intense Sparring
Despite many battles in the UFC, former title challenger Romero continues to compete against top fighters at 47 years old.
Romero advised Adesanya, a 35-year-old veteran, to approach training like ‘therapy’ as he aims to regain his previous form.
“Now he needs to consider training as recovery, not too much hard sparring. He needs to go to training like therapy, to recover his body. He doesn’t need too much sparring now. In my opinion, if Israel wants to return to his best, he needs to recover his body.”
Israel Adesanya has only suffered two knockout losses in his 29-fight MMA career, with Nassourdine Imavov being the second to achieve this at UFC Riyadh last month.
Benedict Kingsley