Adesanya knows who is next

Undefeated UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya’s public search for a new opponent has lasted just 24 hours.

Because privately it seems Adesanya and his head trainer Eugene Bareman have been working towards a new opponent for weeks.

The Kiwi fighting sensation was strongly linked to a title defence against Paulo Costa following his knockout unification victory over Australian Robert Whittaker on October 6 at UFC 243 in Melbourne.

Like Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), Costa (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) is an unbeaten fighter.

The Brazilian was octagon side when Adesanya took the UFC championship belt from Whittaker and was firing plenty of verbal blows towards Adesanya before and after the fight.

It was widely considered the encounter was next but UFC president Dana White this week ended hopes of the fight

Israel Adesanya

happening immediately.

‘‘He had surgery on a bicep, so he’s out for eight months,’’ White said in an interview with The

Schmo. Wallid Ismail, who represents Costa, has confirmed his fighter won’t be ready until April, 2020.

‘‘But we are working on something else with Israel right now,’’ White said. That something else appears to be Yoel Romero (13-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC).

The 42-year-old veteran has lost three of his last four fights but is ranked No 3 in the middleweight division behind Adesanya and Costa. The Olympic wrestling silver medallist at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Romero’s last three losses have all been via decisions to Whittaker (twice) and Costa.

Adesanya has posted to social media showing a screenshot of a conversation between him and Bareman, dated October 17.

It appears they have been aware of the Costa situation for several weeks and have already been planning for Romero. Adesanya is best known for his striking skills but has made big strides with his wrestling and it seems both he and Bareman want to show that by beating Romero.