"I just got him his first passport" - Israel Adesanya gives toungue-in-cheek response to Sean Strickland's attacks on Chinese gig
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is set to defend his title at UFC 293 for the first time in his second reign. He will take on No.5 ranked contender Sean Strickland in Sydney, Australia on September 9.
The banter and trolling between the two has reached an all-time high and there is an increased anticipation for their press conference showdown. Strickland has made numerous jokes at the expense of Adesanya's time in China.
'The Last Stylebender' hit back in an interview with Star Sports claiming that the Sean Strickland got his first passport due to the fight in Australia.
“The worst thing he can find about me is that I acted in China. I acted on a sketch in China. And then he’s just like using that as like, ‘Oh look at this guy!’ Okay, yeah I traveled. I worked around th world. You’ve never even left the country. [laughs] Holy f**k, that’s funny. I actually just got him his first passport. Literally. I - this is breaking news - I just got him his first passport to leave the country."
Israel Adesanya also predicted how Sean Strickland will spend his payday, claiming he will buy a boat.
"Yeah, I mean, he’s gonna buy a boat after this, I already know. He’s spent his money already. He’s gonna buy a boat. So that’s why I try to price himself out of this fight. And I was just like, look, just make this fight happen. I told the UFC. So he got his money, I guess. So this is his money fight.”
Check out his full comments below [7:41]:
Israel Adesanya is rooting for Khamzat Chimaev against Paulo Costa
Newest middleweight fighter Khamzat Chimaev will finally make the move up to the division and leave his weight-cutting problems behind at welterweight. For his middleweight debut, he will take on Brazilian Paulo Costa at UFC 294.
Israel Adesanya faced Cost at UFC 253 in 2020 and put in a Performance of the Night worthy showing. It took the champion just to rounds to win via TKO. However, Adesanya believes that Costa is a much more challenging opponent than he was made out to be.
He said in a recent with MMA Fighting that Chimaev will have his backing because he would like to see newer faces in the division.
"I just made Paulo look easy but trust me, he's a hard fight. He's a hard fight but I made him look easy. But I think I'm rooting for Khamzat [Chimaev] more in that fight... because I like new blood."
Check out Israel Adesanya's quote below: