Israel Adesanya regained the Middleweight Championship with a convincing victory over Alex Pereira at UFC 287, but The Hard work is just starting for the Nigerian Star

By Ryan K Boman | April 22, 2023

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UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya just can’t help himself. He loves to poke the beehive when it comes to his division rivals. And so far, he’s managed not to get stung too often.

While Adesanya has never been shy in the past, the Nigerian-born fighter has been on quite a roll lately in terms of his antics. As he was wrapping up his win against Alex Pereira to regain the title, he mocked his opponent’s 12-year-old son. The youngster had previously disrespected Adesanya when he laid down on the mat after his Dad dropped Izzy in their first fight. So for Adesanya? It was just a little dose of payback.

“I’m petty, bro”, he said in the post-fight press conference. “I remember. The first time he knocked me out in Brazil, his son came into the ring and then just started to lie dead next to me. I’m like, ‘You fuckin’ little asshole, I’ll whoop your ass if your dad won’t do it for you.’ I looked for his kid, I pointed at him, and I saw him and I was like, ‘Hey, hey, hey,’ just to remind him.”

If that wasn’t enough, Israel Adesanya is also locked into a war of words with current number 6 contender Dricus du Plessis, who raised the ire of several in the MMA world with some of his own outlandish outtakes recently.

Du Plessis, a South African, said that when he finally wins a championship, he would be a true representative of the continent. His reasoning was that while he continues to live and train in his homeland, many fighters from that part of the world moved away once they found success.

It might have been a more valid point and far less controversial if he didn’t throw in the last part. The one where he said that he would be a “legitimate” African champion in the UFC in a veiled shot at Adesanya – as well as fellow Nigerian Kamaru Usman and Francis Ngannou, who is from Cameroon.

The latter fighters are often referred to as the ‘Three Kings’ and are all former titleholders in Ultimate Fighting.

Adesanya wasn’t about to let that one slide.

“I don’t wanna give (him) clout,’ Adesanya said. ‘I don’t. I wanna whoop his ass so bad… I wanna do it in South Africa, or Nigeria, but he’s got to do work, he’s got to do something, show me something, so I can whoop that ass, and I can show you history.”

“I’ll remind you, because you got to choose your words wisely when you speak on people that have come before you, people that paved the way for you. You gotta pick your words wisely. You wanna try and be a big boy… ‘I want to be with the big boys.’ Go choose your words wisely, but I don’t wanna give him no clout.”

As is the nature of UFC, du Plessis then had to respond to Izzy’s response.

“For him saying that does he think I’m scared of him?” du Plessis told The MMA Hour. “I am not scared of that man. The fact that he put some threats out there, obviously he’s forgotten because I don’t take kindly to threats. Over here, it doesn’t work like that. If you want to make threats, come and show me.”

“Come and show me how you drag my carcass around. I would love to see you try,” he passionately pressed.

The South African star will face Robert Whittaker at UFC 290 in July, as part of International Fight Week. Big stakes are on the line, as the winner will get a title shot at Adesanya. Du Plessis is confident that he will not only be victorious in that bout, but that he will also ascend to the top of the division.

Despite his 2022 loss to Periera in 2022, Israel Adesanya has been one of the most complete fighters in MMA. His current reign as the Middleweight Champion promises to be an interesting one. Not only does The Last Stylebender have great skills in The Octagon, he’s a master in verbal sparring as well.

In an era where selling a fight is just as important is the contest itself, Adesanya has a keen ability to bait opponents and media to hang on his reactions. While there are several interesting characters in UFC today, Izzy is a unique combination of ‘fighter-meets-entertainer’. It’s a calling card of legends like Conor McGregor and Jorge Masvidal, and Adesanya represents the next genration of great MMA trash talkers and showcase sellers.

While every single fighter tries to display unwavering confidence, not all of them are that convincing. Izzy believes his own hype, and it looks like right now, he’s poised to go down as one Ultimate Fighting Championship’s all-time greats.

At just 33 and at an impressive 24-2 in MMA, Israel Adesanya is also experienced in boxing and kickboxing. He’s quotable and marketable, and he should be able to manage some pretty big fights before he hangs up his gloves for good. He’s legit. And if there were any doubters? Go back and watch how he dismantled Periera for all the evidence you need.

As long as he remains on top, he’s going to be a hell of a lot of fun to watch.
He just has to stay one step ahead of all the enemies he’s currently making right now.

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