Luke Rockhold gives take on potential Israel Adesanya fight: “I’m the only one who can beat Izzy”

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold believes he’s the only one who can defeat Israel Adesanya.

The 37-year-old is set to return in August against Paulo Costa. It’s been a long road back to the octagon for the former UFC middleweight champion. Rockhold last competed against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 239 in July 2019.

Furthermore, the last time that Luke Rockhold competed at 185-pounds was at UFC 221 in February 2018. In the four-plus years that the former champion competed, the middleweight division has been overtaken by Israel Adesanya.

‘The Last Stylebender’ captured the undisputed UFC middleweight strap in 2019 and hasn’t looked back. Now, Adesanya is set to face Jared Cannonier this weekend at UFC 276. However, that’s a matchup that Luke Rockhold believes the champion will win.

Actually, there’s not any fighters that Luke Rockhold believes can defeat Israel Adesanya, besides himself. The 37-year-old discussed a possible fight between the two in an interview with MMAJunkie. With the right tactics, Rockhold believes he can regain the middleweight title that he lost in 2016.

Image via @ufc on Instagram (photographer not listed)

“I think Izzy’s a great champion, I think he’s a good character, I like Izzy. I’m not going to lie. I want to fight him, for sure. I think he wins this fight, I mean, Jared Cannonier throws hard. He could hit a leg in the wrong spot – you never know – or land something wild. But I think Izzy’s range and his dynamicness is going to be too much. Jared can try to take him down, but he doesn’t have enough solid top game to hold him.” (h/t MMAJunkie)

Luke Rockhold continued, “I think I’m the only one that can beat Izzy. Employ the right tactics, and I’ve got that fight.”

What do you think about Luke Rockhold’s comments about Israel Adesanya? Do you agree? Sound off in the comment section below!