Once upon a time, Israel Adesanya’s adversaries used to mock him for being skinny. Derek Brunson and Paulo Costa, two of his former prime opponents, frequently took shots at the Nigerian-Kiwi for not looking like an actual middleweight. After years of hearing criticism over his slender frame, Adesanya now finds himself facing the exact opposite accusation. Fans are grilling him for gaining too much weight.

Recently, new pictures and videos of Adesanya looking noticeably larger took the internet by surprise. The former two-time UFC middleweight champion appeared to be taking part in a photoshoot wearing only gray shorts, with his abdomen, chest, and arms looking significantly bigger than usual. While the camera angle may have contributed to his larger appearance, there’s no denying that Adesanya looks noticeably heavier than he usually does.

Though fighters can gain considerable weight when they are away from competition, ‘The Last Stylebender’ never seemed to have that problem, as he consistently maintained a lean physique. His reported walk-around weight was usually somewhere around 200 pounds. However, Adesanya reportedly weighed around 230 pounds ahead of his UFC 305 title fight against Dricus du Plessis. Even then, the former champion never looked remotely overweight.

That said, Israel Adesanya’s recent weight gain is understandable, considering he currently has no fights lined up.

The Lagos native is also enduring the toughest stretch of his professional MMA career. Adesanya suffered his fourth consecutive defeat against Joe Pyfer at UFC Seattle in March, with the loss coming via a brutal TKO.

The setback prompted him to take some time away from competition. On top of that, the former champion has also parted ways with his longtime coach Eugene Bareman at City Kickboxing, a decision he announced in July.

So, It’s not difficult to imagine that he may not have maintained the same level of training while navigating such a major transition.

Amid this turbulent chapter in his career, age is also beginning to catch up with Adesanya. The Nigerian-Kiwi was just 28 when he made his UFC debut. Now 37, he has spent nearly a decade competing inside the Octagon. Naturally, the physical demands of such a long career, combined with time away from competition, could also contribute to changes in his physique and weight.

Still, despite the former two-time middleweight champion appearing out of shape, he has already taken a major step toward getting back into fighting condition.

After leaving CKB, Adesanya joined Alexander Volkanovski at Freestyle MMA in Sydney this month, reportedly preparing for his next training camp. Although official confirmation of his camp switch is still awaited, the Nigerian-Kiwi could return to peak physical condition with the right preparation under his new coaches as his next fight approaches.

Even so, fans didn’t mince their words after seeing Israel Adesanya looking noticeably heavier.

Fans tear into Israel Adesanya after his overweight photos go viral

“My goat is washed smh,” one fan remarked. Another user followed up, “Definitely parlaying for the other guy to beat Israel’s a–. He ain’t gonna win like his last four fights.”

Another fan even speculated that Adesanya could be moving up two more divisions, asking, “He is moving to heavyweight?”

In the pictures, Adesanya appeared to be somewhere around 230 to 240 pounds, putting him within the general range of the heavyweight division. That prompted another fan to suggest that ‘The Last Stylebender’ could be chasing his longtime rival Alex Pereira, who has since moved to heavyweight and recently faced Ciryl Gane at UFC White House.

“He’s trying to fight Pereira again,” the fan wrote.

The comparisons didn’t stop there, as fans began likening Adesanya’s latest transformation to Jon Jones’ move to heavyweight.

One user remarked, “Thought that was Jon Jones for a sec,” while another echoed the sentiment, writing, “Looking like muffin-top Jon Jones. The pants around the ankles though 😂.”

Jones also carried a lanky frame during his light heavyweight days. However, after moving up to heavyweight, ‘Bones’ appeared considerably heavier when he faced Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. The former two-division champion later returned with a much leaner physique against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, where he showcased his improved conditioning by using spinning back kicks to finish the fight.

However, Jones wasn’t the only fighter fans compared Adesanya to.

Several users suggested that the Nigerian-Kiwi was starting to resemble Jamahal Hill, who has also gained significant weight for his move to heavyweight. “Jamahal, is that you?” one fan joked, while another reacted in disbelief, “Nah, that’s Jamahal Hill.”

Amid all the criticism surrounding Adesanya’s weight gain, one fan pointed toward a more obvious factor: “Aging is a real thing.”

Maintaining a lean physique can become increasingly demanding with age, particularly for a fighter who isn’t currently preparing for competition. However, Adesanya is expected to return to a full training camp at some point, and that could see him regain the familiar shape fans have come to associate with him.

For now, though, it remains to be seen when the former middleweight champion will return to competition and whether his recent weight gain will create any concerns when it’s eventually time to make weight.