Israel Adesanya (24-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC,) currently the No. 6 contender at 185 lbs and a former UFC Middleweight Champion, will be watching Saturday night’s UFC 324 main event matching No. 4 contender Justin Gaethje (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) with No. 5 contender Paddy Pimblett (23-3 MMA, 7-0 UFC.) At stake: The UFC Interim Lightweight Championship.
UFC 324 will serve as the initial card for the seven-year, $7.7 billion (USD) deal between MMA’s No. 1 promotion in the world and Paramount Plus. Israel Adesanya is eager to see how the interim lightweight championship fight will play out inside T-Mobile Arena in Enterprise, NV.
As has become commonplace with MMA fighters currently in the sport, Israel Adesanya recently took to his YouTube page to offer up his opinions on the card as a whole, as well as the headlining affair on the Saturday show.
During his YouTube video, “The Last Stylebender” broke down the anticipated UFC 324 main event scheduled for Saturday night. He mentioned that the stakes are going to be at their highest when the cage door closes for Pimblett.
“You don’t want to be ‘The Highlight’, that’s what I’m saying, and ‘The Highlight’ who doesn’t get tired,” Israel Adesanya began. “I think this is Paddy’s biggest challenge yet, perfect opponent, perfect fight for them. Old dog, new dog.”
Adesanya mentioned that Justin Gaethje would be best served to use his kicking game advantageously versus Paddy Pimblett this weekend in Las Vegas, looking at video of past contests where leg kicks were instrumental in his path to victory.
“The [leg kicks] he did against [Edson] Barboza, oh, a leg kick for a leg kick, they were both battling,” he said. “Tony Ferguson, as well, the way he handled him with the leg kicks, (expletive deleted.) It was gangster.”
Adesanya Expects Gaethje to Push Momentum Forward vs. Pimblett at UFC 324
Subsequently, Israel Adesanya pinpointed on Justin Gaethje’s ability to use his footwork as something which can be paramount to his success on Saturday night.
“I just like the style,” he said of “The Highlight.” “Come forward! This is going to be crazy! This could be a roll of the dice.”
Justin Gaethje has spent a fair amount of time during fight week discussing the fanbase’s opinion that the UFC 324 main event will be a legacy contest, something that Israel Adesanya knows about from his past experiences in the fabled Octagon.
“Same, same, ‘legacy reclamation fight,'” he said. “You can’t take it personally. Like I said to Ariel [Helwani,] you should know the game. I’ve watched this game for years. I’ve seen the greats rise and fall and rise again and then slowly erode. This is just how the flow of the thing goes. This is just the nature of the beast.
Israel Adesanya Analyzes Strengths of Both Men
When the time came for “The Last Stylebender” to give a prediction as to the winner of the main event of the evening at UFC 324, he again mentioned Gaethje’s leg kicks, but stopped short of saying that his gameplan will be predicated by such strikes.
“Gaethje has a nice jab,” he said. “He likes to stay in the mid-range, so he’ll be able to jab Paddy, but Paddy has [a jab,] as well. If he uses his jab well, he’ll be fine. I think Paddy will be on the back foot first and if he cracks Gaethje, then he’ll be the one dictating the pace, but Gaethje will be the first one dictating the pace, in my opinion, in the first few exchanges in the first round. Gaethje has to be careful because Paddy hits hard, but Gaethje can eat them.”
From there, he discussed why the betting odds side with Paddy Pimblett on Saturday night.
“There’s a reason why Paddy’s the favorite in this fight,” Israel Adesanya continued. “I’m just going to follow the script today. I say Paddy in this fight, I just think it’s going to be five rounds. Gaethje can go five rounds, we know. I’m watching the Embeddeds again, Paddy said people haven’t seen him in deep waters and he said that’s where he comes alive, so I want to see it. I want to see it. Show them who you are.”
Israel’s Adesanya’s Pick to Win UFC 324 Main Event
He harkened back to his own interim championship contest when making his pick.
“People thought I was going to drown,” Adesanya said. “I showed them. That’s why I come alive. I believe it. I want to see it, but again, there’s only one man who can make that an early night for Paddy and that’s Gaethje.”
Ultimately, Adesanya wound up going with “The Baddy” as his choice to win.
“I’m just going to stick with the script in this fight, in this card, and I’m going to go with Paddy Pimblett by decision,” he said. Israel Adesanya was quick to change his prediction of method when he was reminded of Pimblett’s proclivity to hunt for the submission.
“That’s a good one,” he said. “I [forgot,] he likes to jump on people’s backs. I say I think submission, too.”
Final Thoughts
We’ve heard what Israel Adesanya thinks. Our staff has made picks for the Gaethje vs. Pimblett fight and the entirety of the UFC 324 main card. Find them here.
