Chael Sonnen believes he knows who and when Israel Adesanya will be making his return to the Octagon.
Adesanya hasn’t fought since September when he suffered a lopsided decision loss to Sean Strickland to lose his middleweight title. Since then, Adesanya jokingly said he wouldn’t return until 2027, which he has walked back on and claimed he will be back sooner rather than later.
Now, taking to his YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen claims he was told Israel Adesanya and the UFC have already agreed to his return. According to Sonnen, that will be at UFC 300 against the winner of Sean Strickland vs. Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title.
“The reason that Strickland and Du Plessis was rushed to the marketplace is because the winner is going to take on Izzy at UFC 300. That isn’t done, which I have also made very clear, but that is the option that is tempting to be preserved the most. Izzy has spoken on this, Izzy hasn’t given us a commitment but he has come close. One thing that I do prefer is that Izzy goes first. I would prefer that Izzy prior to Strickland vs. Du Plessis goes first and says I’ll be waiting for you in April at 300,” Chael Sonnen said on his YouTube channel.
“The reason is because while I know that is the match they are trying to procure, if Izzy goes second, which means we’ve established who the winner is and then Izzy makes his choice it gives the perception that it’s a favorable matchup in Izzy’s opinion. I will agree to it after I know specifically who it is. That isn’t how Izzy operates. That is not part of the Israel Adesanya story, he takes on anybody, he takes on the hardest guys, so I would just prefer that he went first,” Sonnen continued.
Sean Strickland is set to defend his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto against Dricus Du Plessis. It’s an intriguing matchup and if the winner does come out unscathed, no matter who wins, them vs. Israel Adesanya at UFC 300 would be a massive fight, as there is a storyline there for both scraps.
Israel Adesanya (24-3) is coming off a decision loss to Sean Strickland to lose his middleweight title. Before that, Adesanya scored a KO win over Alex Pereira to reclaim his middleweight title after losing it by TKO to Pereira. Adesanya is 13-3 in the UFC and has defended his title five times.
