"Who tf voted for Izzy" - Fans unhappy with Israel Adesanya winning Crypto.com Fan Bonus for UFC 276
Fans were unhappy with Israel Adesanya taking home the Crypto.com fan bonus after what they believe was a lackluster performance from the middleweight champion at UFC 276.
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Adesanya received backlash for his latest title defense against Jared Cannonier. Many believe 'The Last Stylebender' merely coasted through the rounds by comfortably outpointing his opponent.
The champ admitted having an "off night" during Saturday's card. However, Adesanya claimed that his ability to beat contenders on bad nights is a testament to his sheer greatness. During the post-fight interview, Israel Adesanya said:
"I've said this before in the past: On my worst day, I can kill the best man. I call that suicide, on my worst day. I had an off night tonight. Eugene [Bareman] told me, 'The people who really know you,[your] teammates, [your] family, they know you had an off night.' And still, I still f*cked him up."
Catch Israel Adesanya's comments below:
As far as some fans are concerned, though, Adesanya didn't deserve the bonus reward. Check out how UFC Twitter reacted to 'The Last Stylebender' winning the Crypto.com fan bonus.
Fans react to Israel Adesanya winning the Crypto.com fan bonus
Many fans pointed out that Israel Adesanya was the worst choice for the award. Twitter users @Yasin__Ucar, @gordonho560402, @CryptoRyan1989, and @aasavincent were appalled with the results.
@ufc @cryptocom Who tf voted for Izzy lmfao
@ufc @cryptocom Who voted for adesanya dont lie ufc
@ufc @cryptocom IZZY?!?! HAHA
@ufc @cryptocom Wow, Izzy should have got minus 30k
At the same time, some pointed out that fan voting is a flawed system. Unlike other performance bonuses, Crypto.com's rewards are decided through fan voting.
Essentially, the most popular fighter on the card usually wins it, regardless of the performance. The same occurrence happened at UFC 274, when Rose Namajunas won the fan bonus, despite her losing in an uninspiring title fight.
With that being the case, Twitter users @thedoncuz and @logandewulf31 think changes need to be implemented. Fan @lmtmojo, on the other hand, believes fans should be more responsible for their votes.
@ufc @cryptocom i refuse to believe the people that vote for these are real humans they should vote for the less known fighters that get a good win they need it the most
@ufc @cryptocom START THE VOTING AFTER THE CARD NOT DURING/BEFORE. YALL ALLOW PEOPLE TO EARN HELLA VOTES EVEN BEFORE THE GO OHT AND PUT ON A BORING ASS FIGHT
@ufc @cryptocom Honestly these bonuses are an insult and a joke. You should know to do something better than this. Not a chance than Bam Bam, Lawler, Stoliachenko or Turner shouldn’t be in there
The way of deciding who gets these needs to change if the brands want any respect
A massive segment of fans thought Alexander Volkanovski and Alex Pereira were more deserving of the reward.
The Australian, of course, put on a masterclass with his pillar-to-post domination of his rival Max Holloway. Meanwhile, Pereira earned a massive statement win with his knockout of previously No.4-ranked Sean Strickland.
@ufc @cryptocom How did Volk not get this???
@ufc @cryptocom Give Volk n Alex 50/50 of Izzys bonus 🤡🤡
@ufc @cryptocom Alex deserves more than others his KO was unexpected
Twitter users @lildrako559 and @yung_ancient also pointed out that most voters probably didn't watch the event. They think it's the only explanation for why Adesanya won the fan votes.
@ufc @cryptocom Did y’all even watch the fights?????
@ufc @cryptocom MFs only watched the main card