Brendan Schaub hits back at fans blasting Israel Adesanya’s performance: “It’s up to Jared Cannonier to make the fight”

Brendan Schaub believes that UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya isn’t the one to blame for the UFC 276 headliner.

‘The Last Stylebender’ faced Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC 276 last Saturday. Adesanya easily won the fight, but it wasn’t a fight that appealed to many fans. Fans booed the action at times, and many were seen leaving for the exits early.

In the aftermath of the event, various fighters and fans took aim at the champion. Adesanya received a lot of backlash after the contest due to the lackluster action in the fight.

However, Brendan Schaub doesn’t believe the hate is entirely deserved. The fighter-turned-podcaster discussed the bout on The Schaub Show podcast. There, Schaub opined that Jared Cannonier is more to blame for the lack of action.

The former UFC heavyweight stated that Israel Adesanya did what he had to keep the title. Schaub also acknowledged that the champion doesn’t make as much if he loses the fight. Hence, Adesanya not pushing the pace as much.

“Was the main event was a bit of a snoozefest? Yeah, I’ll give you that. My issue is not with Izzy, Izzy is the champ. Jared Cannonier wants what he has, it’s up to him to make the fight. There’s other champions who show out and put it on the line every time, sure. But when you look at the reigning champs, who constantly defend the title, their money is rolling in.”

Brendan Schaub continued, “Izzy knows this, and Izzy’s legacy knows this. Izzy goes, ‘He has to bring the fight to me’, and if they don’t bring the fight, you get a Yoel Romero fight. You get these decisions, you get this Jared Cannonier fight. It’s on them.”

What do you think about Brendan Schaub’s comments? Do you agree? Sound off in the comment section below!