UFC News: En Route to UFC 299, Michael Venom Page Drops Bold Israel Adesanya Take on Dricus Du Plessis Fight

Before his debut at UFC 299, Michael ‘Venom’ Page has made some serious claims about Israel Adesanya and his skill set. ‘The Last Stylebender’ might face 185 lbs champion Dricus Du Plessis on his return, and Page has already picked his winner.

Page is all set to make his debut in the UFC, taking on Kevin Holland at UFC 299. The 36-year-old has been one of the most talked about fighters over the last few years for his exploits in the Bellator. He currently holds a record of 21-2 in his career and is also one of the most prolific knockout artists in the MMA. Let us see what he had to say about a fellow knockout artist.

Michael ‘Venom’ Page claims Adesanya is on a different level

Israel Adesanya was last seen inside the Octagon at UFC 293 when he took on Sean Strickland to defend his title. The 35-year-old lost the fight via decision and since then has been out of action. However, the fans are desperately waiting for his return and it seems he might make a comeback soon. Although there is no announcement for his next fight and opponent, fans believe he might face the current middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis. Experts have started making predictions and Page is no different.

In a recent video posted on X (formerly Twitter) by UFC on TNT Sports, Page made some serious claims. He said, “Any fight that my boy ‘Izzy’ is in is a fight that I wanna… not only just see, I wanna be there. I was there when he got his comeback fight in Miami, which is interesting that I am now fighting in Miami, like a year later.”

Page further added he was there in the audience at UFC 287 when Adesanya reclaimed his middleweight title. The former Bellator title challenger described the atmosphere as ‘electric’, having an ‘unexplainable energy.’ Page also claimed he wanted to be a part of anything Adesanya was a part of, hinting at his willingness to fight on the same card as the Kiwi if the opportunity arises.

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He was then asked to pick his favorite between Adesanya and Du Plessis, to which he replied, “Yeah, you know what, ‘Izzy’ had a bit of a rough up and down last 3-4 fights. But he is just unimaginably exceptional at his craft. And I would never put any amount of money against him to not come and win that fight. Especially from just watching the performance that Du Plessis had last fight. I think he is a tough opponent, but the skill level is just different and I see ‘Izzy’ taking that.” While there has been no announcement of his return yet, ‘Stillknocks’ seems interested in taking on the former champion next.

Dricus Du Plessis ready to fight Israel Adesanya on his return

Dricus Du Plessis currently holds the middleweight title and is waiting for his next opponent. ‘Stillknocks’ was last seen inside the Octagon at UFC 297 against Sean Strickland for the middleweight title. The 30-year-old shocked everyone with his performance and won the fight via decision. He now holds the coveted title of being the first South African champion in the UFC and is ready for his first title defense. He recently shared his thoughts on his next fight and said, “I would like to fight Israel Adesanya next, preferably on home soil… I think that’s probably the next fight.”

While many believed that he would face Adesanya at UFC 300, the current champion is not bothered about featuring at the historic event due to the short turnaround after a bloody last fight. He further added, “I mean, UFC  300 is just a number, it’s not as massive as UFC Africa.” The pair were initially slated to fight each other at UFC 293, but it never happened because of an injury to Du Plessis. However, it now seems that the much-awaited battle will finally take place. Do you feel Israel Adesanya will take on Dricus Du Plessis and emerge victorious? Let us know in the comments below.

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