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The war of words between the UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya and former UFC Light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones seems to be escalating each day with many now hoping that the super-fight between the two isn’t merely restricted to social media jibes.
The latest to show interest in the matchup is none other than the #1 contender for the UFC Welterweight title, Gilbert Burns. “Durinho” tweeted earlier today that he sees Israel Adesanya as the better fighter and predicts a victory for “The Last Stylebender” in any weight division he ends up facing Jones.
Burns, who was expected to face Kamaru Usman in July for the Welterweight gold was replaced by Jorge Masvidal, after testing positive for COVID 19 at Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. His title bout was rescheduled for December 12 at UFC 256; however, this time Usman pulled out from the bout citing the need for more recovery time from undisclosed injuries.
It is interesting to note that “Durinho’s” future opponent, the Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman shares his Nigerian heritage as well as a close friendship with Adesanya so Burns backing the “Tha Last Stylebender” against arguably one of the greatest Light Heavyweights ever is indeed high praise, especially considering the recent trends about fighters trashing their opponents' friends and teammates.
The “Jon Jones vs Israel Adesanya” saga has been brewing on social media for more than a year now originating even before Izzy won his championship against Robert Whittaker at UFC 243.
An intriguing affair, to say the least, the prospective super-fight has divided the MMA community, fans and experts alike.
While on one hand, many believe that Jon Jones’ size, reach and unorthodox style will be enough to dispose of Israel Adesanya, the other end of the spectrum backs Israel’s superior striking ability and the innovative offense backed by his kickboxing background, “Durinho” being the latest to join this club.
Jones, however, has not had the best performances in his last couple of outings with narrow decision wins over Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes respectively, with many believing Reyes should have been the winner in their encounter.
Israel Adesanya, on the other hand, has had 2 relatively easy encounters after knocking out Robert Whittaker for the Middleweight title, including a highlight-reel worthy knockout of the much-hyped Paulo Costa in his last outing.
With more fighters showcasing their interest in the Israel Adesanya – Jon Jones encounter, it may be time for the matchmakers at the UFC to perhaps start contemplating the possibility of the fight.
