Adesanya expects to be under 200 lbs for light heavyweight title fight

Israel Adesanya revealed he's likely to come in underweight for his light heavyweight title bout versus Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259.

"The Last Stylebender" believes he could weigh in at around 193 pounds, well below the 205-pound limit.

The reigning middleweight champion is moving up for the first time in his UFC career for Saturday's main event. However, the 31-year-old is taking the same approach he would for a middleweight bout.

"Same flex, baby," Adesanya told Ariel Helwani, according to ESPN's Marc Raimondi. "Same thing. It's just silly to me when people go and decide to add more muscles to their frame that they're not used to over the years working this game."

Adesanya said he's not intimidated by the idea of Blachowicz fighting over 205 pounds following Friday's weigh-in.

"If I fought a guy that was 300 pounds, I could probably still beat him," he said, though he admitted it could be a different fight if his opponent "grabs me and decides to pin on me."

Regardless of the outcome, Adesanya said he wants to go back down to defend his middleweight title. He added that he wants to have three or four fights this year.

Adesanya also said he's putting a possible fight with former light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones on hold because he wants a crowd for it.

"I can't do that in an empty area," he said.

Adesanya (20-0) will attempt to become the fifth fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two different weight classes simultaneously.