My career will end in UFC, Adesanya not open to boxing

Former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has ruled out a move to boxing after his mixed martial arts career ends, insisting his legacy will be completed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, 

The Nigerian-New Zealander, who currently sits at No.6 in the UFC middleweight rankings, made his position clear during a Q&A session at Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA in Thailand.

“For me, my career is going to end in the UFC, I believe. But never say never,” Adesanya said.

“I thought about this two months ago, and I always said like, nah, you’d never catch me.’’

This is the ultimate form of fighting, which is mixed martial arts. You are using all your limbs, all your weapons. How can I now, as one of the guys in this game who’s been up there, say, ‘Oh, I’m just going to go box?’”

The 35-year-old former kickboxer explained that while he briefly considered boxing after contemplating his financial worth, he ultimately decided to remain loyal to the UFC.

“I always said no because I felt like my legacy is already set in stone. But everyone has a number, and I think I got to my number two months ago. I was like, you know what? It’s really high. I don’t think anyone – maybe Turki (Alalshikh) can afford it, but nah. I’m just going to finish my career at the top in the UFC,” he added.

Many former UFC fighters, such as Anderson Silva and Darren Till, have found new life in boxing, but Adesanya does not plan on following suit.

The ‘Last Stylebender’ achieved immense success upon transitioning to MMA from kickboxing, which led to five title defences as UFC middleweight champion. He was dethroned by longtime rival Alex Pereira at UFC 281, before avenging his loss by knockout to reclaim the middleweight belt at UFC 287.

Adesanya has not competed since a TKO loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Fight Night 250 in February 2025, his third loss in a row. In the same Q&A, he revealed that he is no longer chasing the belt.

The former champion fell out of the top five rankings in October 2025, dropping to No.6 after Brendan Allen climbed four places to fifth following his victory over Reinier de Ridder.

Despite his recent struggles, Adesanya was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in June 2025 as his epic 2019 clash with Kelvin Gastelum joined the promotion’s prestigious Fight Wing. The five-round interim middleweight title battle at UFC 236, which he won via unanimous decision, was enshrined alongside other legendary contests.

Culled from punch