Israel Adesanya flaunts his light heavyweight physique ahead of UFC 259

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is looking lean and mean ahead of his debut in the light heavyweight division.

Adesanya will make his light heavyweight debut in the main event of UFC 259 this Saturday in Las Vegas, when he challenges the division’s reigning champion Jan Blachowicz in hopes of becoming a two-division titleholder.

On Thursday, less than 24 hours out from the UFC 259 weigh-ins, Adesanya shared a photo of his pre-fight physique, and he seems to be in phenomenal shape.

Fans will surely not that, while Adesanya looks like he’s in phenomenal shape, he doesn’t exactly look like a light heavyweight.

That shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Ahead of his light heavyweight title fight with Blachowicz, Adesanya has made it clear that he doesn’t intend to pack on any extra mass, instead opting to fight around the same weight that he does as a middleweight.

"Don’t be surprised if I weigh in at 193 [pounds]."

Even though he's preparing for a light heavyweight fight, @stylebender says he's keeping "the same energy" and not changing his fight week routine ahead of #UFC259 (via @arielhelwani) pic.twitter.com/aFb5hW05Yu

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 2, 2021

“I’m going to keep the same energy during my fight week,” Adesanya told ESPN when asked what he’ll weigh on Friday morning. “I’m not going to go crazy and order Uber Eats and cakes and whatever, I’m just going to keep the same energy.

“Kai’s hopping in the sauna, in the bath, so I’m going to do the same thing that I always do [at middleweight], mainly just for my routine, my mind,” Adesanya added. “It’s not a superstition thing. My body knows it’s Fight Week already, so it’s going to start dropping weight because this what my body does. My body just realizing this what we’re doing. So I’m just going to keep the same energy.

“Don’t be surprised if I weigh in at like 193,” he concluded. “Put it this way: I could still make 185 if I have to.”

What’s your prediction for Saturday’s Israel Adesanya vs. Jan Blachowicz title fight?