Israel Adesanya has gotten so big and strong that his longtime training partner and current UFC lightweight, Dan Hooker, “doesn't even want to spar with him.”
That's because “The Last Stylebender” is “too strong.”
This may come as a surprise to fans who remember Adesanya criticizing heavyweight champion Jon Jones and arguing that skill, not size, was the key to winning the title. Either way, Adesanya will need to drop down to 185 pounds for his return at UFC 305.
“Israel… I don't even want to spar with him right now. The way he's hitting me, I think he's like 105kg,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “I just kicked him, kicked him, kicked him in the leg, and I was like, 'I'm done.' I just thought, no, that's it. Yeah, that's it. He's been out for a while. He's had injuries. He's spent a lot of time building up his size and strength. And he's hitting like a truck driver. Yeah. I'm not even going to spar with him, because he's too good. So I can't wait for him to get in the fight. So if you think you can walk in his front door and go through his fridge, you're in for a nasty surprise.”
Adesanya (24-3) will challenge current middleweight champion and arch-rival Dorricus du Plessis for the 185-pound belt in the main event of UFC 305 pay-per-view (PPV) on Saturday, August 17, 2024, at RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.
Let's hope his old enemies root for him.
UFC 305 will mark Adesanya's first appearance in more than 10 months since losing the middleweight title to Sean Strickland at UFC 293.
And a lot has changed between then and now…
