Eric Nicksick Defends Israel Adesanya’s Coach Amid Fan Backlash

Israel Adesanya was a massive -600 favorite going into his UFC 293 title defense against Sean Strickland on Sept. 9.

Mixed martial arts fans watched in awe as the odds steadily changed after every round with Strickland emphatically outclassing the Nigerian-born Kiwi to the point where the challenger was a -125 favorite going into the final frame.

Adesanya looked out of his wits, especially after getting dropped in the first round of the bout, en route to a lopsided unanimous decision loss in one of the greatest title fight upsets in the history of the sport.

Adesanya’s head coach at City Kickboxing in Auckland, Eugene Bareman, has come under somewhat undue criticism in the aftermath of the championship loss for "The Last Stylebender" against Strickland.

While Bareman is credited with forming an elite MMA hub in that part of the world, honing the likes of Alexander Volkanovski and Kai Kara-France, one upset loss was seemingly enough to earn him the wrath of fans.

One fan opined that it is perhaps time to start questioning the coaching capabilities of Bareman while comparing him to NBA coach Doc Rivers, who holds the NBA record for most Game 7 losses in history.

He’s absolutely elite. What he’s help build in a short amount of time, with limited resources due to proximity, is nothing short of miraculous. Honestly, had we lost that picture could’ve easily been mine. 🙏🏼❤️

— Eric Nicksick (@Eric_XCMMA) September 11, 2023

However, Strickland’s head coach at Xtreme Couture, Eric Nicksick, firmly defended Bareman while noting that he could easily have been on the other side of the table.

“He’s absolutely elite,” Nicksick wrote on social media in reply to the fan. “What he’s help [sic] build in a short amount of time, with limited resources due to proximity, is nothing short of miraculous. Honestly, had we lost that picture could’ve easily been mine.”