Caio Borralho Aims for Israel Adesanya as Final Step Before Title Shot: “Best fight for me”

After jumping up seven spots to take his place in the middleweight top five, Caio Borralho believes a fight against former two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya should be next.

On Saturday night, ‘The Natural’ extended his unbeaten streak to 16 and surged up towards the top of the 185-pound rankings with an exceptional performance against Jared Cannonier in the UFC Vegas 96 headliner.

With the win, Borralho now finds himself surrounded by some seriously talented company, including fellow top-fivers Nassourdine Imavov, Robert Whittaker, Israel Adesanya, and Sean Strickland.

Already looking ahead to his next challenge inside the Octagon, Borralho thinks that a scrap with ‘The Last Stylebender’ could be his best route to an eventual title fight with reigning middleweight world champion Dricus Du Plessis.

“I think Adesanya might be the best fight for me right now,” Borralho told Laerte Viana. “If I had to choose one more before the title, I think it would be Adesanya and then the title.”

Caio Borralho suggests lack of focus may be the cause of Adesanya’s recent struggles

However, Borralho isn’t sure that he’d get the same ‘Stylebender’ he watched dominate the division for so many years.

After winning 12-straight at middleweight, Adesanya has lost two of his last three, including back-to-back losses against Sean Strickland and Du Plessis. Now 35 years old, it’s not unreasonable to think that father time is beginning to catch up with the City Kickboxing star.

Still, Borralho knows that even if the ‘Stylebender’ has lost a step, he’s still a dangerous man to trifle with inside the Octagon.

“Maybe [Adesanya’s] not the same focused guy he was before, but he’s still the same guy with the same technique, skill and dominance,”

Is Caio Borralho vs. Israel Adesanya the fight to make following last weekend’s fight card at The APEX?