Israel Adesanya's head coach Eugene Bareman has confirmed that the Middleweight champion is certainly not done at LHW. Adesanya was handed the first loss of his pro-MMA career tonight by Jan Blachowicz at 205 lbs.
Speaking with Brett Okamoto from ESPN, Eugene Bareman stated that his protege needs to recuperate after tonight's loss. The head coach at City Kickboxing in Auckland is certain that Israel Adesanya will have a chip on his shoulder after his first MMA defeat-
"Israel's the type of guy that dares to be great. He wants to do things that no one else has done. So it ends this chapter for now. I'm sure he is keen to get back to middleweight and look after his division there.
"But I'm sure at some stage, the way Israel is, this will eat away as a chip on his shoulder... I'm sure that he'll want to come back and have another crack at this.
"We reassured that we are proud of him for what he is doing. He said to me let's go back down to Middleweight and clear that out and then reassess what's going to happen", said Eugene Bareman.
In an interview with Submission Radio leading up to UFC 259, Eugene Bareman had revealed that Israel Adesanya has been working on his grappling skills as of late. However, it appeared in tonight's fight that Blachcowicz utilized the weight discrepancy to his advantage as he clinched with Adesanya.
Israel Adesanya vs Jon Jones off the cards after tonight's loss?
Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones have been on each other's nerves for many years now. It was speculated that if victorious tonight, Adesnaya might be facing 'Bones' very soon. However, with Adesanya's most recent defeat to Jan Blachowicz, it is unlikely that Jones vs Adesanya will take place any time soon.
Jon Jones immediately took to Twitter to poke fun at Israel Adesanya for falling short in his endeavor to become the double champ.
Jon Jones is expected to make a move to heavyweight this year. UFC president Dana White has made it clear that the winner of the headliner at UFC 260 (Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou) will be facing Jon Jones next.