Reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is not afraid to get walloped in training camp if it helps make him a more resilient fighter when it counts; namely, in the UFC 276 pay-per-view (PPV) main event this Sat. night (July 2, 2022) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
And for all you tough guys who think Wandy-era Chute Boxe is the gold standard for rough-and-tumble training, just remember the goal is to make improvements as a fighter, not spend the holidays in adult diapers drinking turkey through a straw.
Helping “The Last Stylebender” in this recent “iron sharpens iron” video is fellow kiwi Dan Hooker, who looks nothing like a 145-pound fighter in between camps. While “The Hangman” doesn’t possess the bludgeoning power of Jared Cannonier, who looks to upset the 185-pound apple cart this weekend in “Sin City,” he certainly does an admirable job of putting the screws to Adesanya.
“Everyone’s [saying] ‘what’s the game plan? How are you going to beat Jared?’” Adesanya said during the UFC Vegas 57 post-fight show (via MMA Fighting). “I’m like look, I’m going to fuck him up. That’s the main thing. I’m going to fuck him up and I’m saying that because I want that. I want people to be like ‘let’s see, let’s see.’ Because I know what I’m doing.”
Adesanya (22-1) is 11-0 in the middleweight division, having recently outpointed former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 271 in Houston. The only blemish on “The Last Stylebender’s” record is a light heavyweight decision loss to Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259 in early 2021. As for the hot-and-cold Hooker (21-12), he’s coming off back-to-back losses to Islam Makhachev and Arnold Allen.
UFC 276 is a big night for the middleweight division. In addition to the “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” headliner, top contenders Sean Strickland and Alex Pereira hook ‘em up for a potential shot at the 185-pound title, while Uriah Hall looks to keep himself afloat in the division Top 10 at the expense of No. 13-ranked Andre Muniz.
For the rest of the UFC 276 fight card and PPV lineup click here.