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Israel Adesanya’s coach hints at recent mistakes, says he has ‘soul searching’ to do
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- Israel Adesanya’s coach hints at recent mistakes, says he has ‘soul searching’ to do
Photo by Mat Hayward/Getty Images
Israel Adesanya's return to the Octagon last month ended in his fourth straight defeat.
Adesanya was quick to let fans know he isn't thinking about retiring, even though it's been over a year since his last win.
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Although he seems eager to stay active and keep challenging himself, some like Demetrious Johnson feel Adesanya has already done enough in the sport.
His long-time coach recently reflected on this latest setback and shared what he believes the next steps are for the former two-time middleweight champion.
Eugene Bareman: Adesanya needs more than glimpses of his old self
Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC
There's a growing sense that Adesanya's recent loss to Joe Pyfer was more about mindset than physical ability.
In the defeat, as with some of his others, Adesanya started strong but couldn't hold on when the fight turned against him.
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Eugene Bareman from City Kickboxing spoke about what needs to change for Adesanya in an interview with Submission Radio.
"I know where the changes have to be made for Israel and I'm not going to talk about those publicly but you see glimmers, right? You see glimmers of the old Israel," he said. "So, it's just about turning those glimmers into longer, sustained bouts of effort.
"He just has to do some soul searching, mate, like you do after every fight. Every fighter after they lose has to tuck themselves away in the forest or in a dark room for 24 hours or whatever they do. They have to figure life out so that's just what Israel has to do."
Bareman could be hinting at something deeper going on behind the scenes, perhaps related to how Adesanya is preparing. Although he didn't say it outright, there are questions being raised.
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Adesanya isn't in the top five anymore but remains one of UFC's biggest stars and still wants another title shot.
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