Kelvin Gastelum hopes he can run things back with Israel Adesanya some day.
Gastelum (18-8 MMA, 12-8 UFC) gave Adesanya a tough test at middleweight, pushing him to the brink in their interim title fight at UFC 236 in 2019. Gastelum would go on to lose four of his next five before returning to the win column against Chris Curtis this past Saturday at UFC 287.
Now that he has rebounded, Gastelum is eager to go on a title run and has set his sights on Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC), who reclaimed his middleweight title from Alex Pereira at UFC 287.
“We got the win, mission accomplished for now,” Gastelum said on his YouTube channel. “I’m back on my feet. This is, like I said, the renaissance of K.G. I’m ready to take it to another level. I’m ready to go all the way this time, all the way to the belt. Maybe a rematch with Izzy. Who knows?
“That’s the goal. Why not? People want to see that fight. I want to be champion. I’m not just saying that just to say it. I mean that, so that’s where I’m working towards. I’m talking to my manager about what the next steps are.”
Gastelum returned from a 20-month layoff against Curtis after undergoing knee and mouth surgery. Now that he’s healthy, the 31-year-old wants to have an active 2022 and is targeting a return in July.
“We’re looking at maybe International Fight Week,” Gastelum said. “I don’t want to take too much time off. I haven’t fought. So I want to keep getting those checks. International Fight Week is what it’s looking like for me. I want to be able to fight that week, and I think it’s good. Just staying active and maybe again by the end of the year. So that’ll put me 3-0 this year, and that’s my goal.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.
