Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya cited the need for ‘individual training’ as the main reason behind his decision to leave CKB.
Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya parted ways from Auckland’s City Kickboxing Mixed Martial Arts gym after 17 years with the team.
Adesanya’s announcement came after a series of recent struggles inside the Octagon, including his most recent loss to Joe Pyfer at UFC Seattle. He’s lost four consecutive fights since knocking out then-UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira at UFC 287.
Adesanya’s longtime coach, Eugene Bareman, hasn’t publicly addressed the former champ’s departure. Bareman said shortly after UFC Seattle that Adesanya needs to ‘do some soul searching’ after his recent struggles.
As Adesanya prepares for another potential return to the Octagon to end his ongoing skid, he’s explained his decision to part ways with City Kickboxing.
Israel Adesanya announces shocking City Kickboxing split: ‘A long time coming’
In a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Adesanya explained his decision to part ways with City Kickboxing.
“So on Wednesday, May 20th, I spoke to Eugene face-to-face, and I told him that I’m not coming back to City Kickboxing. This was something that was a long time coming, behind the scenes, and we have an understanding,” Adesanya said.
“I won’t lie, it sucks. Not anymore…grief comes in waves, for me. I’ve had great days, but also days where [I’m not]. But it’s a long time coming. I just wanted to get it out of the way because I wanted you to hear from the horse’s mouth. And those who knew were waiting for the ball to drop. It’s bittersweet, but it’s the right thing for me. Especially with where I’m at in my career, it’s exactly what I needed. Insanity is doing the same s— and expecting a different result.
“I just don’t want to talk about it. As I said, it sucks. I want to grieve in peace. If people want to bring it up, that’s cool, but don’t ask me about it,” Adesanya continued. “I established myself in Auckland, and City Kickboxing made me into the fighter that I am today. They’ve trained a lot of great fighters, greats even better than myself. But me as an individual…I was one of the main pillars who put them on the world stage…and what I need for myself, is focused, individual training. So I’ve made the decision to leave City Kickboxing for my own reasons, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Adesanya didn’t point to specific reasons behind his decision outside of the ‘need for individual training’. As of this writing, Adesanya remains unsigned to a fight team and could join another gym in the coming weeks.
Adesanya’s announcement comes after a rumored falling out with teammate and UFC light heavyweight champion Carlos Ulberg at City Kickboxing. As of this writing, neither Ulberg nor Adesanya has publicly addressed the social media rumors in recent months.
What is Israel Adesanya’s current ceiling for his UFC future? Let us know your predictions in the comments!
