Adesanya is the most successful UFC fighter.

Israel Adesanya, a former UFC middleweight champion, was the promotion’s most lucrative fighter in 2022 when he sold more than $1.5 million worth of pay-per-views.

The rematch between Adesanya and Whittaker at UFC 271 in February 2022 generated $600,000 in PPV sales. Israel’s subsequent matchup with Jared Cannonier, which took place in July at UFC 276 had less robust $400,000 sales.

Adesanya’s most recent fight took place in November at UFC 281 in New York, when he faced Alex Pereira. Israel lost the title belt in that bout, which garnered $600,000 in PPV sales, and was beaten by TKO in the fifth round. He has a record of 23 victories and 2 loses.

The 33-year-old, who had held the middleweight championship for more than three years, lost it to kickboxing foe Alex Pereira in his penultimate contest of the year.

Despite having defeated the majority of the top contenders in his weight class, Pereira defeated ‘The Last Stylebender’ and went on to win the UFC championship after only four bouts.

For Adesanya, it was all too familiar since, before to their first encounter in the cage, his Brazilian opponent had twice defeated him in kickboxing. Adesanya made the switch to MMA after Pereira defeated him in a rematch after Pereira had won a contentious decision over him in 2016.

Adesanya said that the UFC has already confirmed that he would fight Pereira in an instant championship rematch only days following his title loss. “Yup, he and I. It will be between him and I for the belt. I’ll speak to Dana (White) eventually, but UFC vice-president Mick (Maynard) is calm and already knows what’s coming up, Adesanya stated on The MMA Hour.

First of all, Israel Adesanya didn’t even hesitate about accepting this battle, which was complimented by White, who also seemed ready to another encounter between the two. He desired this confrontation; a lot of people speak about it in public, but the real reality is very different. I wouldn’t discount it (a rematch).

Adesanya emphasized that he doesn’t want to stay sidelined for an extended period of time and that he would first enjoy his Christmas and New Year’s celebrations before planning his comeback. Adesanya competed three times in the ten months leading up to his title loss at UFC 281, ranking among the most active champions on the roster.

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