ISRAEL ADESANYA has slammed MMA manager Ali Abdelaziz for trying to instigate a fight with Kamaru Usman.

Dominance MMA chief Abdelaziz recently talked up a champion versus champion bout between the welterweight and middleweight kings.

Seeing Abdelaziz publicly campaign for a fight between the Nigerians has irked Adesanya, who told Ariel Helwani: "It bothers me as well. Like what the f***ing is this peanut head talking about?

"I've gone on record and said I don't like this fight.

Usman and Adesanya, 34 and 32 respectively, became the UFC's first African-born champions in March and April 2019 respectively – with Francis Ngannou joining them last March.

And The Last Stylebender would rather see himself and Usman both holding UFC gold than hold two belts himself.

He added: "It's bigger than us. I understand where he's coming from.

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"Don't get me wrong… but you can make tens of millions other ways. There's so many other fights you can make.

"He [Ali] needs to give his fighters his phone back, cause sometimes he gets on there [social media] and talk all this rubbish.

"This fight, it's bigger than us. The great nation of Africa, we've got three people who are champions right now and defending it within their divisions with an iron black fist."

Fan favourite Adesanya hopes to one day bring the UFC to Africa with Usman and Ngannou.

He told SunSport last month: "100 per cent [it's something I have to tick off].

"Because what me, Kamaru and Francis are doing right now is history.

"So there's got to be a way to cement that for us, for our people.

"And I feel like doing a card in the continent, the great continent of Africa, would be the one.

"So we'll make that happen. By hook or by crook, we'll make that happen."

He added: "They've [the UFC] known about it for a while, so it's gonna happen.

"It's just climates of things need to align properly. So yeah, it'll happen."

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