Sean O’Malley has high praise for Israel Adesanya.
The two-time UFC Middleweight Champion is to return at UFC 293, likely defending his title against Sean Strickland next since September proves to be too quick of a turnaround for #1 contender Dricus Du Plessis.
O’Malley On Adesanya’s Next Foe, Sean Strickland
Strickland, the controversial contender, is coming off a string of wins over Nassourdine Imavov and Abus Magomedov. Fellow ranked middleweight Jared Cannonier is also riding a two-fight win streak, with one of those victories being over Sean Strickland last year.
Despite ‘Tarzan’ dropping a decision to Cannonier, O’Malley can see why Strickland is getting the title shot against Adesanya.
“Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland’s probably going to be next,” O’Malley said on his podcast. “[Jared Cannonier] fucking looked good against Marvin. He beat Sean Strickland, but already lost to as Adesanya. I wonder if Jared’s like, ‘what the fuck’? or you get the game and [realize] like, okay, Sean Strickland’s a f*cking character [and that’s why he’s fighting for the title].
“If you’re the UFC, I don’t know if you want Sean Strickland as your UFC champion. His takes… Him going on podcasts saying, ‘I crave killing people’. He wants that [attention]. No one’s gonna fuck with him, but that’s what he wants.”
‘I’m F*cking Hyped For That’
Whether Strickland gets cancelled for his comments or not, ‘Suga’ can’t wait to see him and Adesanya go to an all-out war on the feet in Sydney, Australia.
“Izzy vs. Adesanya, I’m f*cking hyped for that. I will watch that, I’ll buy that, I’m excited for that. You wouldn’t watch that?
“He ain’t gonna do that [grappling] sh*t [against Adesanya],” O’Malley said of Strickland. “[He’s gonna strike with him], yeah. [But, Adesanya is too fast for him], that’s what I would think, too.”
O’Malley On Israel Adesanya And Anderson Silva
As for Adesanya, O’Malley hails him as the best champion in UFC history.
“Izzy has been the best champ UFC’s ever seen,” O’Malley proclaimed. “The amount of times he has fought consistently as a champion in the UFC is f*cking legendary. The level of competition [between Adesanya and Anderson Silva], I feel like’s not even comparable.”
In his historic run, Israel Adesanya has won eight title fights and has racked up five title defenses since becoming the undisputed champion in 2019. ‘The Last Stylebender’ holds wins over Robert Whittaker (2x), Marvin Vettori (2x), Alex Pereira, as well as the aforementioned Anderson Silva.
Before Adesanya ever became king of the middleweight division, ‘The Spider’ has spun his own legendary web of wins in his title reign from 2006 to 2013. Silva beat the likes of Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen and many more. Silva still holds the record for the longest win streak in the UFC at 16.
Sean O’Malley later admitted he didn’t watch Anderson Silva growing up.
