Israel Adesanya has hinted that he has more fights left than many fans would expect, as the former UFC champion prepares for an intriguing test next month.
On 28 March, Adesanya will take on rising contender Joe Pyfer in the main event of a Fight Night in Seattle.
And the question on most lips is whether Pyfer’s heavy hands will neutralise Adesanya’s slick striking and movement, as well as the experience of the former two-time middleweight champion.
If Adesanya, 36, can see off Pyfer, 29, he will snap a three-fight losing streak, having gone 1-4 in his last five bouts. Meanwhile, American Pyfer will enter Seattle on a three-fight winning streak, having bounced back well from his sole UFC loss in 2024.
Ahead of that bout, Adesanya discussed his fighting future while speaking on his YouTube channel, and while many fans expected that the Nigerian-born New Zealander might only have a few contests left in him, that may not be the case after all.
“Less than 10 [fights left],” Adesanya told his brother. “What, are you surprised?”
When Adesanya’s brother said he thought the “Last Stylebender” might only have four or five fights left, the former champion responded: “Who knows? I know it’s less than 10, it can’t be past 10.
“So, if I fight now and one more time towards the end of the year maybe, that’s two fights. If I do two fights a year… f***.
“Next year I can still fight. 2028 is where I’ll be like… I don’t know yet, I can’t see past 2027. I don’t know.
“I don’t think that far ahead at the moment, but I do glance at it, but I don’t really try and focus on it. I just know I’m on the tail end.
“I can see the finish line. I’ve been seeing the finish line in the distance, but now it’s closer. But who knows at what pace will I get there?”
Adesanya’s last win came in April 2023, when he knocked out old rival Alex Pereira to regain the UFC middleweight title, avenging his own stoppage loss to the Brazilian from November 2022. Those UFC clashes followed a pair of kickboxing contests between Adesanya and Pereira during their previous careers, with the latter going 2-0 at that time.
And while Adesanya’s first UFC reign lasted an impressive three years, taking in five successful title defences, his second was short lived. After avenging his loss to Pereira, Adesanya was beaten in his next fight, dropping the belt to Sean Strickland in September 2023.
Adesanya then failed to win the title from Strickland’s successor, Dricus Du Plessis, as the Kiwi was submitted by the South African in 2024. And Adesanya lost for the third time in a row last February, when he was knocked out by Nassourdine Imavov.
Meanwhile, Pyfer’s three-fight win streak has consisted of a KO of Marc-Andre Barriault, a decision over Kelvin Gastelum, and most recently a submission of Abus Magomedov in October.
With that, Pyfer recovered from a decision defeat by Jack Hermansson in February 2024, when the latter briefly derailed the hype around the American, who had begun his UFC career with three straight stoppage wins.
