Kamaru Usman believes Israel Adesanya still has the skills, but it\u2019s the mental game that\u2019s a problem right now.<\/p>\n
This past Saturday, Adesanya lost to Joe Pyfer in the main event of UFC Seattle for his fourth defeat in a row. Much like his two previous losses, Adesanya started out strong before faltering as the fight went on and getting stopped. In the aftermath, questions about Adesanya\u2019s future<\/a> started popping up, though \u201cThe Last Stylebender\u201d insisted he has no plans to retire anytime soon. And his longtime friend, Kamaru Usman, thinks that\u2019s fine, if Adesanya can lock back in.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a fan of Israel\u2019s, and as a spectator, as well, I see it from that perspective. But I also see it as a fighter who has been in a situation like this,\u201d Usman said on his Pound-4-Pound podcast<\/a>. \u201cAnd God, it\u2019s difficult, because he still has it. You can see it. He can still twitch you and land and chop you up, to where I think, when you\u2019re in a situation like this, it\u2019s almost impossible not to doubt yourself.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re on the way up, and you\u2019re young, you\u2019re just, \u2018Next one, next one, next one.\u2019 You\u2019re consistently just going in there and doing it and being victorious. You don\u2019t have time to doubt yourself. You have that chip on your shoulder. But when you\u2019ve been to the top, and now you\u2019re rolling back down, you start to doubt yourself while you\u2019re rolling back down. Do I still have it? Can I still do it? Am I still that good? So, you have to find some way to anchor yourself and turn the boat around.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why I feel like, when the fight starts, Izzy knows he still has it. So, he goes out there and shows the brilliance. He shows it. He does his thing. But then, when you face that resistance, are you able to anchor yourself back down, stick with the game plan, use your fight IQ, and continue to build back up that stream? And that\u2019s what I just think we\u2019re having a little bit of trouble there with Izzy, because you saw it.\u201d<\/p>\n Usman understands Adesanya\u2019s position better than most. Both Usman and Adesanya had five title defenses as UFC champions, with much of their reigns overlapping, and like Adesanya, Usman went on a long losing streak after losing his, dropping three consecutive fights. However, Usman rebounded last year at UFC Atlanta, defeating Joaquin Buckley to get back on the winning track, and so he believes he knows exactly the mental hurdles Adesanya has to battle through. But ultimately, it\u2019s Adesanya who has to do it.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just a few things throughout the course of that fight,\u201d Usman said. \u201cYou see the brilliance. You see, when he switched stances and kicked the body, he measured, he measured, found that knee that was an inch off. A little bit more with that knee, fight\u2019s over, Pyfer\u2019s gone. So, he shows that brilliance, it\u2019s still there, but when you start to face resistance, especially a guy as powerful as Pyfer, and he starts to hit you really, really hard, and you take those shots, can you anchor yourself and say, \u2018You know what, I still got what it takes. Let me get back to the game plan. Let me use this fight IQ here and let me win.\u2019 And that\u2019s just where I think he\u2019s having a little bit of trouble.<\/p>\n \u201cBut the only person who can answer that is Izzy. Can he still anchor himself? Can he still find that? Because he still has the skills. He\u2019s still sharp. He can still put combinations together.\u201d<\/p>\n Timely. Colby Covington files lawsuit<\/a> against Jorge Masvidal over attack outside restaurant in 2022.<\/p>\n BMF. Charles Oliveira responds to Nate Diaz saying he\u2019d \u2018beat the f*cking sh*t out of\u2019 him<\/a>.<\/p>\n Quack. Cory Sandhagen rips Sean O\u2019Malley for not pushing for UFC White House matchup, reveals fight offer that didn\u2019t come to pass<\/a>.<\/p>\n Trust. Gable Steveson trusts Jon Jones to lead him to the greatest heights in combat sports: \u2018He knows best.\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n Nose. Merab Dvalishvili smashes nose in training<\/a>, refusing surgery until retirement.<\/p>\n Relive Ethyn Ewing\u2019s monster upset ahead of UFC Vegas 115.<\/p>\n What\u2019s next for Costello Van Steenis.<\/p>\n SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE<\/p>\n You never know what\u2019s real with these Hype announcements.<\/p>\n Renan Ferreira (13-5) vs. Sergey Bilostenniy (14-4); PFL Sioux Falls, May 2.<\/p>\n Magomed Magomedov (21-5) vs. Leandro Higo (23-7); PFL Sioux Falls, May 2.<\/p>\n Joel Alvarez (23-3) vs. Yaroslav Amosov (29-1); UFC 328, May 9.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s be honest, tomorrow\u2019s UFC card is the definition of a Strawberry Picking Card (it\u2019s not apple season). If you\u2019ve got nothing else to do on Saturday night, then fire up Paramount+ and watch some fights. But if you do have anything else, go do that, and we here at MMA Fighting will keep you up on all the important things that happen.<\/p>\n Enjoy the weekend. Love y\u2019all.<\/p>\n If you find something you\u2019d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKLee<\/a> of @JedKMeshew<\/a> on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, Twitch<\/a>, and like us on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n