"He just wrestle-fu*ked me" - Israel Adesanya gets honest about sparring Dricus du Plessis in Thailand
Israel Adesanya reclaimed his belt in stunning fashion at UFC 287 when he knocked Alex Pereira out cold in the second round. 'The Last Stylebender', who usually calls out his next opponent following a victory, refrained from doing so as his sole focus was on defeating 'Poatan'.
However, the middleweight king did mention one contender who he would love to face, stating that he wants to 'drag their body across South Africa'.
Israel Adesanya's apparent beef with Dricus du Plessis stems from comments made by the South African. 'Stillknocks' was captured questioning whether any of the UFC titles won by Adesanya, Kamaru Usman or Francis Ngannou actually went to Africa. Du Plessis implied that while the trio were indeed African, none of them actually trained in the Mother Continent.
'The Last Stylebender' recently appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, where he revealed that he had sparred with Du Plessis many years ago in China. Israel Adesanya, who is eager to face 'Stillknocks', described the sparring sessions and said this:
"Funnily enough, we've trained together before. I whooped his a**. He just wrestle-f***ed me for the first round. [It was] years ago, I was in China [and] you have to leave China for like a week I think, to renew your visa. And then I went to Thailand for a while. It was nice, yeah he was a cool kid. Even when he came to the UFC I was actually supportive..."
Watch the video below from 40:30:
Israel Adesanya's recent win over Alex Pereira makes him the first UFC middleweight champion to recapture the title after losing it, a remarkable feat. 'The Last Stylebender' cemented himself as one of the greatest champions the sport has ever seen.
Israel Adesanya praises Alex Pereira's leg kicks
Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira shared a heart-warming moment backstage following their bout at UFC 287. The pair exchanged pleasantries and 'The Last Stylebender' briefly asked 'Poatan' about how he throws his leg kick, which had a visibly effect on Adesanya in both their UFC bouts.
Adesanya recently appeared on the FLAGRANT PODCAST hosted by Andrew Schulz, where he praised Alex Pereira's leg kick. The 33-year-old recalled his interaction with Pereira backstage, and said this:
"I told him, 'You with that leg kick [is] f***ing dangerous!'... There is no tell [with his kick]. Sometimes when you leg kick you to step, and the quicker the step, the quicker the kick... but he doesn't even step."
Watch the video below from 42:55: