Combat sports has seen several former UFC fighters transition into boxing once their mixed martial arts career is over.
Former UFC champions Anderson Silva, Francis Ngannou, and Tyron Woodley moved to the squared circle. Ben Askren, Darren Till, Jorge Masvidal, Nate Diaz, and others made the move.
One fighter that isn’t interested in the allure of boxing paydays after stepping away from the octagon is former two-time middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
“‘For me, my career is going to end in the UFC, I believe,” Adesanya said during a question and answer session with Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA. “But never say never. I thought about this two months ago, and I always said, like, nah, you’ll never catch me – Like I said before, 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? I always said no, because I felt like my legacy is already set in stone.”
“The Last Stylebender” could be lured to the boxing ring, but it would take a very large paycheck.
“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 Turkey can afford it, but nah,” he said. “I’m just going to finish my career at the top in the UFC.”
