Sean Strickland shocked the world when he not only defeated Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 to become the new middleweight champion, but outclassed him throughout five rounds to do so. It marked Adesanya's second defeat at 185 pounds after losing to Alex Pereira last year. While many observers were quick to ponder what was next for both Strickland and Adesanya, UFC president Dana White believed a rematch madde sense.

“I think you do the rematch. Absolutely. The rematch is interesting,” White said in the post-fight press conference. “That could be the thing too, you know, when you think about, you're going into the [Alex] Pereira fight, such a big fight, you've been in there with this guy so many times, you overlook Strickland. I don't know, I don't know the answer to these questions. But Israel does, and I'm looking forward to hearing them.”

Of course, White is the boss and if he says the rematch is next, that is likely what will happen next as he usually gets his way. However, unlike Adesanya's first defeat at middleweight to Pereira, he doesn't warrant an immediate rematch this time. In fact, it might even be to his benefit that he doesn't get an immediate rematch.

When Israel Adesanya lost his middleweight title to Pereira last year, it made sense to give him an immediate rematch. For starters, it was his first-ever loss at middleweight while he also had a reign of five successful title defenses that was more than enough to make him deserving of an immediate rematch. Not to mention the fact there was a clear storyline given his rivalry with Pereira dating back to their kickboxing days.

As we all know, “The Last Stylebender” would go on to regain his middleweight title in emphatic fashion after knocking Pereira out in said rematch earlier this year. But going into his fight with Strickland, it was the start of a new middleweight title reign and Adesanya lost. He can't just bank on his first title reign to get an immediate rematch, especially when one considers he's now lost two of his last three fights. Maybe if he had earned one or two title defenses and then lost to Strickland, it would have been warranted. However, that wasn't the case.

The manner of the defeat should also be taken into account. It's not like Adesanya was caught with a lucky punch or a submission out of nowhere. He was dominated over 25 minutes of action. He had next to no answer to Strickland's pressure, high guard, jab and one-two. Even worse, he struggled to even damage the American — Strickland barely had a scratch on him by the end of the fight.

Now, one could argue Adesanya simply had an off night as he didn't look himself or he was just underestimating Strickland. Strickland certainly felt it was a case of the latter. A few adjustments and it's more than possible a rematch goes another way. However, that's on Adesanya if he really didn't perform to his best. And who is to say Strickland simply didn't just nullify his game completely and make him look poor? It's not like Adesanya was dealing with an injury. He did get dropped at the end of the first round, but he recovered enough to win the next round — his only round won during the fight before going on to lose the next three. Would a rematch really go that much different? It remains to be seen.

Not having an immediate rematch may be the best thing for Adesanya as well. After his defeat, he kept things brief and stated he needed to reserve time for himself and his family. Since debuting for the UFC in 2018, he has fought at least a minimum of two times a year with five fights since the start of 2022.

While the New Zealander can be extremely polarizing, there's no way anyone can criticize him as an inactive fighter. However, that can take a toll in many ways, and Adesanya could perhaps benefit from being on the sidelines for a change. It would certainly help if his recent activity did in fact affect his performance.

It would also allow a chance for the division to move on and play itself out with new blood. Let Strickland defend his title against the likes of Dricus du Plessis or have a rematch with Jared Cannonier.

Maybe the winner of Paulo Costa vs. Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294 next month enters the title picture as well. And then when a rested and fully focused Adesanya is ready to make his return, it will be all the more hyped up and important. In the end, it's all down to Israel Adesanya and whether he opts for an immediate rematch or some time off.