Israel Adesanya after City Kickboxing exit: 'Look in the f*cking mirror'

The former UFC middleweight champion, without a win in over three years, says this is "the most fun training camp I've had in years" ahead of a rumoured return in Saudi Arabia on 5 December.

Israel Adesanya says he could have been a better teammate at City Kickboxing, but that others need to own their mistakes too, in a training camp vlog made since he left the New Zealand gym he had called home since 2009.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking," Adesanya said. "Like, I could have been a better teammate because I could have made better bonds at CKB with certain people who I've trained with for years, and I did make some close bonds, but I feel like I could have been a better teammate in certain aspects."

He added: "When I sit back and look at it, I'm like, I hid behind them sometimes and just let the idiot take over. But that's me being self-aware now. I can't say the same for other people, if they can be self-aware and be like, 'Yep, I f*cked up as a coach' or 'I f*cked up here, here, here.' … Look in the f*cking mirror and just know what you did and be better."

Adesanya made the decision to leave in July. When he announced the split, he called it "bittersweet" and gave no reason for it. He did not give one in the vlog either. "Don't let them ever tell you otherwise or let them tell you, 'He got too big for his boots.' F*ck off," he said. "I know who I am and I'll never let anyone tell me otherwise."

Adesanya now trains with a smaller team built around him, and says the change is working. "I can truly say with my departure from my old gym, CKB, and now building the team that I have and training specifically for me, this is the best I've felt in a very long time. For real," he said. Later in the vlog he added: "This is the most fun training camp I've had in years. That's going to show on fight night. I've been in fight week shape for weeks."

Adesanya has not won since he knocked out Alex Pereira to win back the UFC middleweight title. He lost the belt to Sean Strickland in his first defence, then was finished in each of his next three fights, by Dricus du Plessis, Nassourdine Imavov and Joe Pyfer.

His next fight is rumoured to be against Shara Magomedov at UFC Saudi Arabia on 5 December. When a reporter put that rumour to Dana White at the UFC 333 post-fight press conference, White did not confirm it.

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