Israel Adesanya’s head coach has revealed that he is doing things ‘quite differently’ ahead of the former long-reigning UFC Middleweight kings next fight against Nassourdine Imavov on February 1st.
Israel Adesanya’s Head Coach Reveals They’re Doing Things ‘Quite Differently’ Ahead Of His Next Fight
The Israel Adesanya next fight isn’t too far away, as the former long-reigning UFC Middleweight Champion returns on February 1st in a 185-pound contest against Nassourdine Imavov.
‘The Last Stylebender’ was last seen in action at UFC 305 in August 2024, where he was submitted by the reigning middleweight king Dricus Du Plessis in their all-African battle.
Now, Adesanya aims to get back to winning ways in his first non-UFC Title fight since February 2019. Prior to this clash with Imavov, Adesanya fought in 14 consecutive UFC pay-per-views, which just goes to show the level he was competing at and just how big a draw he is.
Now though, it is back to business as the 35-year-old aims to get back in the win column in early 2025. Standing in his way is Nassourdine Imavov, who has aspirations of his own to fight for the UFC Middleweight Title before the end of the year.
Ahead of his octagon return, Israel Adesanya’s coach has revealed that he is doing things ‘quite differently’ this time. Following back-to-back defeats to Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis, Eugene Bareman knows he needs to do something different with Adesanya in order to get back to winning ways.
Eugene Bareman Confident Of ‘Vintage Performance From Israel’ Against Imavov
In a recent interview with Combat TV, Eugene Bareman admitted that both he and Israel Adesanya have tried different things this time around and are aware they need to make improvements to get back in the UFC Middleweight Title picture.
“There’s a few things that I’m doing quite differently with Izzy for this fight. They’re a lot more drastic to what I’m usually accustomed to doing,” Adesanya’s head coach revealed in a recent interview with Combat TV.
Bareman is a highly successful coach, having led ‘The Last Stylebender’ to world championship status in 2019. That was also the year he was named UFC Coach of the Year. Alongside Adesanya, Bareman trains several other elite MMA fighters who compete in the UFC and fight out of the City Kickboxing gym.
This includes former featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski, who used to train alongside Bareman and Adesanya regularly.
“Based on [Adesanya’s] past performances I felt we needed to really flip things on its head a bit. He’s looking really, really good and responding really, really well to this slightly different approach.
“I’m looking for a very vintage performance from Israel and so far we’re right on track for that,” concluded Bareman.
Israel Adesanya goes into his middleweight battle with Nassourdine Imavov on February 1st as the favourite with the best UFC betting sites in the UK. He will need a win here, or else his career as a top 185-pound UFC fighter could be done and dusted.
Be sure to claim the various UFC betting offers and free bet deals available on the SportsCasting site ahead of the next big UFC pay-per-view event.
