Mick Maynard’s Shoes: What’s next for champ Israel Adesanya after UFC 271 win?


See whom Israel Adesanya should fight next after his title defense over Robert Whittaker in the UFC 271 headliner.

(ALSO SEE: Mick Maynard’s Shoes: What’s next for Robert Whittaker after UFC 271 loss?)

UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] fended off arguably his biggest threat for a second time Saturday when he beat Robert Whittaker in their UFC 271 main event rematch.

Adesanya (22-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) earned a unanimous decision win over Whittaker (23-6 MMA, 14-4 UFC) at Toyota Center in Houston. It was a highly competitive fight that saw the champion’s reign put to the test. But ultimately, “The Last Stylebender” got the job done and moved his record to 22-0 when fighting at 185 pounds.

It was another positive step for Adesanya’s goal to lap the contenders in the middleweight division, but now he’s likely to get his long-desired fresh face in Jared Cannonier.

Is that truly the fight to make, though? Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on Adesanya’s future after UFC 271.

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