As it currently stands, Nigeria’s Israel Adesanya may just be the best pound for pound mixed martial artiste in the world.

His stint so far in the Ultimate Fighting Champion has resulted in an untarnished 20-0 record and has earned him a UFC title. He is the reigning defending undisputed UFC middle weight champion in the world.

His last fight with Brazilian juice Jiu-jutsu fighter Paulo Costa saw him successfully defending his championship, after which he mentioned who he believes is deserving of a title shot against him.

However, former light heavyweight champion and arguably the best MMA fighter in history, Jon Jones, took a shot at Adesanya, claiming that he would have dropped Israel if it had been him.

“Costa lost the fight the day he signed the contract to fight for the championship,” Jones said about Costa.

“His new fame defeated him before the fight even started. Kid just stood there in front of a kickboxer and showboated for the cameras. Don’t compare me to someone who’s proven nothing.”

“I’ve never been knocked out or even dropped in my career. I’ll take this boy down and break something on his body, fact,” Jones continued in another tweet.

Since then it has been an ugly back and forth between both athletes. And, for the past week, they have been taking shots at each other, with the banter becoming increasingly personal. Jones mentioned Adesanya’s father, questioning if the man is proud of his son.

I’m curious to hear what his father tells him when he asks about fighting me. I wonder if his father believes he’s ready? Eugene definitely doesn’t

— BONY (@JonnyBones) September 30, 2020

He also stated that Israel makes African men look soft.

McGregor came and made Ireland look like royalty. You came and made African men look soft. Get the fuck out of here

— BONY (@JonnyBones) October 5, 2020

Israel brought up Jones late mother, also stating that she wouldn’t be proud of his conduct.

My pops already told me how I’d beat you. Trust me he knows.
Your mom would be disappointed in who you’ve become. https://t.co/CGGykYXSNn

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) October 1, 2020

For some fans, this is where they drew the line, as they called out Adesanya for his classless comments. However, the two fighters didn’t end it there, they went ahead to continue their uncomfortable Twitter battle, with Adesanya bringing up more of Jon Jones personal challenges, including when he battled with drug addiction, and his criminal record.

Find a real picture of me like this…
Never, cuz I actually learn from my mistakes. You don’t know shit about redemption. What is it now?…
8th time’s the charm lol. pic.twitter.com/AC7lzxRhR7

— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) October 5, 2020

This no doubt has the makings of something that would end in the ring.

Jon Jones has stated severally this week  that he wants nothing more than to fight Adesanya, and president of the UFC Dana White also stated that he would love for the fight to happen.

The problem is, they both belong to different weight classes. Adesanya registers at 180 lbs, for the middle weight division, while Jones registers at 240 lbs for the light heavyweight division.

Also, having dominated the light heavyweight decision, Jones dropped the championship a few months back, stating that the division doesn’t excite him anymore as no one can take him down. He planned to gain some extra pounds and get into the heavyweight division to find new competition.

A fight against Adesanya would definitely put a dent on this plan, and literally have him back track from his current goal. For a fight to happen between both Jones and Adesanya, Adesanya would either have to gain some weight or Jones would have to lose some. This is not uncommon, and Adesanya has clearly stated that he wouldn’t mind fighting Jones with his current weight class.

Jon Jones been cleaned out the light heavyweight division instead of him going to heavyweight he decided to fight middleweights coming up in weight😂😂😂

— Flash12789 (@flash6677777t) October 6, 2020

This hypothetical fight has been heavily debated online as a number of people are of the opinion that Jones far outmatches Adesanya. Some fans believe that Jones will expose Adesanya if they got into the octagon, while others believe that Jones cannot stop Adesanya’s current momentum, having back to back successfully title defenses from two top class world champions.

Chinedu Okafor