Israel Adesanya fires back at critics by referencing Max Holloway's prediction for UFC 276

Israel Adesanya (L) and Max Holloway (R) [Images via Getty]

Despite taking minimal damage in his championship win over Jared Cannonier at UFC 276, Israel Adesanya has faced backlash for going the distance after predicting a stoppage victory.

After looking back at his performance, the middleweight champion believes Max Holloway should receive the same criticism.

I'm just speaking facts-- "The Last Decision-Maker" Israel Adesanya is boring as sh**. What a lame main event performance at UFC 276. I'm still not impressed with this dude. Pereira's gonna knock him out again. Stop defending him @dc_mma. 😴🛌🏽

👑👓: youtu.be/v3_Znk_KRso https://t.co/KS56BbGVLH

Most of the haters were disappointed by Adesanya predicting a performance like Anderson Silva against Forrest Griffin and not delivering. With that said, Holloway lost to Alexander Volkanovski after predicting he would win within three rounds.

During an interview on his YouTube channel, Adesanya fired back at the critics by saying:

"They are saying, like, 'He said this. He said [that] he's gonna knock him out.' Look, you can go down that whole fight card, and people are saying what they are gonna do in the fight, not just myself. Shoutout to Max Holloway. He said, 'I'll be surprised if this goes more than three rounds,' cause he was that confident in himself. He didn't get the job done, but you're not gonna kick a man while he's down."

Fans can hate all they want, but Adesanya got the job done and defended the middleweight title. Although it was not the most exciting fight, 'The Last Stylebender' stayed out of trouble and took virtually no damage.

Watch Israel Adesanya discuss his UFC 276 performance below:

Israel Adesanya clarifies that he couldn't overcommit or he would get countered by Jared Cannonier

If Israel Adesanya receives backlash for the fight, then Cannonier deserves blame too. The challenger has power, but he wasn't willing to take enough risks.

During the same interview, 'The Last Stylebender' had this to say about his own gameplan:

"There's no bit in that fight where I took my foot of the gas in the sense that I'm coasting. I wasn't coasting. I was like, 'I'm gonna keep touching him, and I'm gonna keep touching him until he falls.' I didn't wanna overcommit. If I overcommit, I knew he was gonna counter me, or I knew I would leave myself in a vulnerable position. That's stupid."

People can say what they want, but nobody can deny Adesanya's legacy. The middleweight champion cleared out the division, leaving only one contender remaining: Alex Pereira. Discrediting what 'The Last Stylebender' has done is laughable.

.@stylebender confirms initiation of talks for a fight against Alex Pereira 👀

#UFC #MMA https://t.co/Ko84jtfUhI