Israel Adesanya, the former two-time UFC middleweight champion, has significantly increased his muscle mass and strength as he prepares to face Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 in Perth, Australia on August 17, 2024.
According to his teammate, Dan Hooker, Adesanya has made substantial gains in size and strength during his time away from competition.
"He's packed on a lot of muscle mass, and he's hitting incredibly hard," Hooker said in an interview with Submission Radio.
"He's had time to focus on his strength and conditioning, and it shows. He's like a different fighter now."
Adesanya, who has been out of the Octagon for nearly a year, is determined to reclaim the middleweight title and become the division's first three-time champion.
With a UFC record of 13-3, Adesanya faces a formidable opponent in Du Plessis, who has not lost a fight since 2018 and currently holds the middleweight title.
Du Plessis won the title via a split decision victory over Sean Strickland at UFC 297, and Adesanya is eager to dethrone him.
"I can't even bother sparring with him (Israel) at the moment," Hooker said.
"The way he's hitting me, I think he's like 105 kilos. He's had some time off, he was carrying some injuries. He spent a lot of time just packing on some size and a lot of strength, bro. And he's just hitting like a truck, man."
Adesanya's only losses in the UFC came against Sean Strickland, Alex Pereira, and Jan Blachowicz in a light heavyweight title bout.
However, he has shown significant improvements in his strength and conditioning, which could give him an edge in his upcoming fight against Du Plessis.
The highly anticipated bout between Adesanya and Du Plessis promises to be an exciting showdown, with both fighters determined to emerge victorious.
Will Adesanya's newfound strength and size be enough to dethrone Du Plessis, or will the South African fighter continue his winning streak? Fans will have to wait until August 17 to find out.
