ISRAEL ADESANYA is champing at the bit to share the octagon with Jared Cannonier – mainly because he's providing him with a "fresh" challenge.
The Nigerian-born New Zealander will defend his middleweight crown against the former heavyweight early on Sunday morning in the main event of UFC 276 in Las Vegas.
The clash with the in-form Killa Gorilla snaps a run of consecutive rematches for The Last Stylebender, who is happy to have a new challenge on his table.
Adesanya, speaking in his role as a global brand ambassador for crypto casino and sports betting platform Stake.com, told SunSport: "I'm very excited [to be fighting Jared].
"I'm excited to be fighting someone that I've not fought before. I'm excited that it's a fresh fight; new blood, new energy and I'm ready to go."
First-time UFC title challenger Cannonier enters International Fight Week's showpiece bout in the form of his mixed martial arts career.
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The Texan has won five of his last six outings, with his sole defeat in that run coming at the hands of former 185lbs champ Robert Whittaker.
Four of those victories – including his statement-making win over Derek Brunson in February- have come via emphatic stoppage.
The run of TKO victories is the result of Cannonier's ever-improving and unique striking style, which Adesanya believes is one of his best attributes.
The 32-year-old said of Cannonier: "His standout skillset? He has power, but so does everybody else.
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"He has an unorthodox way of striking, but I'm very unorthodox myself.
"And I'm looking forward to playing that game if that's what he wants to play. If he wants to grapple, we know how to roll."
Fan favourite Adesanya – who recently inked a bumper new deal with the UFC – goes into his fifth title defence on the back of a dominant victory over Aussie rival Whittaker.
Although he "felt superior" to The Reaper, perfectionist Adesanya wasn't completely satisfied with his performance.
He said of the fight: "I thought I did well. I wanted to do better, so that's why I was so hard on myself.
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"So [I give myself] a 7/10. So yeah, I know how I felt in there and I felt superior to [Robert]."
Israel Adesanya is an ambassador for Stake.com, one of the leading and fastest-growing cryptocurrency betting and gaming operators worldwide.
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