Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has announced a sabbatical ‘for a long time’, a month after losing his belt, but has promised to return to the sport despite facing the possibility of three months in jail for drunk driving.
The Kiwi fighter lost his middleweight championship to Sean Strickland by unanimous decision in Sydney in September, in one of the biggest upsets MMA has ever seen—something he described as feeling like ‘a bad dream’.
Now the 34-year-old Lagos-born fighter has revealed plans for an extended exit from the UFC to regroup, change his lifestyle, and prepare himself for the future, following his third competitive defeat against Strickland.
Adesanya told The Rock FM in his native New Zealand: ‘I’m not making any excuses. Strickland got me on the night because he was the better fighter on the night, and he did his work well. He had a good team behind him.
‘Now I’m going to take time to look after myself. I’m not going to fight for a long time. I’m definitely not going to retire, because that’s not me.
‘But if I did, I’m fine. I don’t need to prove anything else. But I know what I can do, and I know what I can change in my lifestyle to make my body adapt to where I need to be.
‘I’m going to heal myself up; you won’t see me fight for a long time.’
He noted that there was the possibility of him taking on Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294, but that his sabbatical meant his team turned it down. Instead, Kamaru Usman will be the opponent for the undefeated Chimaev on Saturday, October 21.
Adesanya added: ‘I’m sure they called my team up, and my team were like, “He’s not fighting right now”. If I wanted to, I could. That would be cool.’
Instead, he admitted that taking on a number of fights over the past year and a bit to get the most out of MMA during his career meant that it had caught up to him.
‘Four fights in the last 14 months, it takes a toll on your body,’ he said, noting that he had seen the doctors and done specialist tests to get himself back ready for fighting.
He said, ‘I’m just going to take my time to heal, and then when I come back, f****** run for the hills.’
Adesanya also faces the potential of three months in prison or a fine of up to $2,680 (£2,210) after pleading guilty to drunk-driving charges in New Zealand.
The incident took place on August 19, when Adesanya was pulled over and found with 87 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood in his system. The legal limit in New Zealand is 50 milligrammes.
In a statement provided to ESPN, Adesanya said, ‘I want to apologize to the community, my family, and my team for the decision I made to get behind the wheel after drinking at a dinner.
‘I am disappointed with my decision to drive; it was wrong. I know that people might follow me, and I want them to know I do not think this behaviour is acceptable.’
He will return to court for sentencing on January 10.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")