“The Last Stylebender” has rediscovered his fire.
Former two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has not competed since suffering a second-round knockout loss to Joe Pyfer at UFC Seattle earlier this year (watch highlights).
However, Adesanya is officially ready to go again.
During a recent appearance on Demetrious Johnson’s podcast, the former champion revealed that he has signed a contract for his next fight.
“We just signed the contract yesterday,” Adesanya
said. “Finally. Both of them—you know, you’ve got the disclosed purse and the other one.”
“All I’m going to say is there is going to be blood in the sand,” Adesanya continued. “It’s easy to talk because I’ve lost my last four, but it’s all good. There will be blood in the sand, and it won’t be me.”
Adesanya has been linked to a potential main-event showdown against Shara Magomedov at UFC Saudi Arabia on Dec. 6, 2026. MMAmania.com can confirm that is the matchup UFC wants to book, although uncertainty continues to surround the event because of the dangerous climate in the region.
UFC CEO Dana White, however, insists the promotion still intends to move forward with the card.
If the fight happens as planned, Adesanya believes fans will see a rejuvenated version of the former champion. According to “The Last Stylebender,” competing had stopped being enjoyable during his recent decline—but that feeling has finally changed.
“I’ve missed this sh—t,” Adesanya said. “The last three years have just not been fun. I’ve been lost, so I’ve been found again. I just can’t wait to showcase everything. Yeah, you’ll see. You know me, I speak from the heart, and I don’t want this to get bigger. I’ll just show you guys.”
The prospective matchup would also mark Adesanya’s first UFC fight without longtime team City Kickboxing in his corner, adding another significant wrinkle to his attempted career revival.
Adesanya is riding the first four-fight losing streak of his decorated career and has not won since knocking out Alex Pereira in their April 2023 rematch (watch highlights).
At this stage, changing camps and rediscovering his motivation might be exactly what Adesanya needs—or it could be too late to reverse a decline that has already lasted three years.
Either way, “The Last Stylebender” believes he has finally found his way again.
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