Israel Adesanya is back in training and could make his return before the year is out, according to longtime coach Eugene Bareman.
The former middleweight champion has been sidelined since his knockout defeat to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia, a result that marked his third-straight loss.
When will Israel Adesanya fight next?
Bareman revealed that Adesanya has re-committed to the grind of being a professional fighter after taking time off earlier this year.
“Izzy, right now, had, basically, the start of the year off [after the Imavov loss],” Bareman told Submission Radio.
“He has come back into training in the last couple of months.
“He’s training regularly, so he’s training every day, twice a day.”
The legendary coach explained that the focus is on Adesanya regaining rhythm in the gym rather than securing a specific opponent.
“He needs to prepare his mind and body for a potential fight at the end of this year, and so that’s what he’s doing,” Bareman said.
“As far as opponents, I don’t know.”
Who will Israel Adesanya fight next?
Bareman emphasised that the goal at this stage is simply finding a fight that excites both Adesanya and the fans, rather than mapping out his path back to the title.
“Izzy’s got a couple more in him, just give him a fun fight,” he said.
“Give him something exciting. Give him something fun. I haven’t really thought about specific names, leave it to the fans.”
Still, one matchup stands out – a possible rematch with controversial star Sean Strickland, who dethroned Adesanya in 2023.
“I think naturally as a fighter, Izzy wants to get that one back,” Bareman said.
“He knows Sean got the better of him, you can’t take nothing away from Sean that night.
“But I think Izzy, or us as a team, feel that we can definitely put on a better performance against Strickland.”
For now, ‘The Last Stylebender’ is back in the gym, sharpening his weapons, awaiting the right opportunity.
As one of the companies biggest stars, he could be the perfect name to sell one of the UFC’s final pay-per-views of the ESPN era, before they transition to a different model on Paramount.
