Adesanya’s Coach Can’t Guarantee A Fight With Du Plessis, Cormier Backs Diaz Over Paul In MMA

Israel Adesanya’s coach, Eugene Bareman, has not guaranteed his fighter facing Dricus Du Plessis.

The latter is the number one contender in the middleweight division following his TKO win over Robert Whittaker during UFC 290.

In the aftermath of that process, Israel and Du Plessis had a face-off in the cage. All eyes were then set on a potential fight with Adesanya, who would be making a defense of his middleweight title.

However, things would not turn out that way. The South African was not able to get ready for a September 9th, 2023, bout in Australia due to the quick turnaround time. 

Not only that, but there were suggestions that he may have had a foot problem. Regardless of what the case may be, Sean Strickland was confirmed as Israel’s opponent.

With that being said, Bareman felt Du Plessis might not get another chance. 

Adesanya’s Coach

“It is what it is. He didn’t want to push through his injury. It doesn’t matter to me. That’s something to do with him and his team, and he has to go back and fight someone else.

“He had it, and he let it slip. So, they can’t be sitting comfortable thinking that they’ve got the next shot (after Strickland), because they don’t – because I know this sport. The fact is, they don’t. But they did. They never took it. And now they should not be sitting comfortable thinking they’ve got the next shot, because in this sport, it’s just not true,” Bareman

Nevertheless, it is important to bear in mind the following point. There is a lot of bad blood between Adesanya and Du Plessis after the latter vowed to be the first African to bring the UFC belts to his country.

And in doing so, he inadvertently questioned Adesanya’s background as the latter does have links with Nigeria and New Zealand.

So perhaps moving forward, this could simply be another attempt to build up the fight. After all, Adesanya was annoyed by those comments.

“I don’t wanna give [him] clout. I don’t. I wanna whoop his a** so bad. I wanna whoop his a** so bad. I wanna do it in South Africa, or Nigeria,” Adesanya

Paul vs. Diaz MMA

Daniel Cormier is not confident that Jake Paul can get one over Nate Diaz in an MMA fight. 

His comments arrive in the aftermath of Paul’s unanimous-decision win over Diaz in the latter’s pro-boxing debut.

Although Paul managed to secure the win, in the final round, Diaz showed the prowess he may have in an MMA bout.

During a clinch, Diaz put Paul in a chokehold, showing the ease in which he could win a potential MMA fight. And for Cormier, he felt the same, as he saw no other outcome but a Diaz win. 

Cormier’s Take On Paul Vs. Diaz

“Nate will submit him. If they fight, Nate will submit him. I’ll take less confidence in Jake Paul fighting Nate in MMA because of last weekend. Jake’s best chance of dominating Nate Diaz was in boxing, and he didn’t. While he did win the fight convincingly, he didn’t put him out like many people thought he would – and that’s different,” Cormier

Nevertheless, it is important to bear in mind the following points. Paul does have a wrestling background, which suggests that he is not a complete novice.

Not only that, but depending at the fight weight, this could be an equalizer. In their boxing fight, the pair fought at 185 pounds. 

This favored Paul, who was the bigger fighter, as Diaz is known for fighting around 155 pounds. That could throw an interesting dynamic into the fight.

And in any event, even if Paul did lose, his stock would continue to rise. He has shown a willingness to push the boundaries by taking on a pro boxer, Tommy Fury, in his seventh fight. And that at the very least should be commended. 

“What I will say about Jake Paul: He’s better than people try to give him credit for and he’s a lot tougher than people try to give him credit for, because one of the areas I thought he would struggle was when it got hard, he would kind of fold up and go back to making videos or doing something different. But he doesn’t pack it in – he fights through the tough times,” Cormier

Adesanya, Paul and Diaz have plenty of things to think about moving forward over how their approach their upcoming fights.

And given that huge fan base they have built, they will have to choose a fight that satisfies the curiosity of the fans.

And there is not getting away from that. Time will tell how they all move forward. 

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