Kiwi UFC star Israel Adesanya feels “alien” in the country he was raised
Former middleweight champion and title contender Israel Adesanya opened up about feeling 'alien' in his adopted country of New Zealand in a Twitter post. 'The Last Stylebender' shared an excerpt from the Mandate podcast featuring Dre Skrilla, providing some perspective about the struggles of people, particularly in developing countries.
The Nigerian-born Kiwi tweeted that he's 'seen the gutters' growing up in Nigeria, adding that life is all about perspective. Furthermore, Israel Adesanya said that traveling and seeing the world adds to one's perspective, and encouraged people to get out rather than 'complain on apps' to appreciate life better.
Here's the tweet by 'The Last Stylebender':
I’m an alien in NZ, from Naija growing up I’ve seen the gutters, literally. It's all about your perspective. The clubs are cool sure, but seeing the world is cooler. Stack up your bread and travel to gain perspective. Or just complain on all the apps if you like xo. https://t.co/5uLbJ0R5hB
The caption on Israel Adesanya's tweet read:
"I'm an alien in [New Zealand] from Naija. Growing up, I've seen the gutters, literally. It's all about your perspective. The clubs are cool, sure, but seeing the world is cooler. Stack up your bread and travel to gain perspective. Or just complain on all the apps if you like."
Adesanya definitely seems unfazed by his recent title-loss to Alex Pereira. After the UFC 281 bout, he displaced grace upon losing his belt, turned up to the press conference in a fur coat and spoke about his loss in true championship spirit.
Here's what Adesanya said following his UFC 281 loss:
"I'm grateful [for the experience]. What a life, what a moment! F*****g crazy, innit? Like, [the fight was] similar to the last time [I fought him], same story. It's crazy, but yeah, I was fine [towards the end of the fight]."
Check out Israel Adesanya's UFC 281 post-fight press conference below:
Will Israel Adesanya find redemption against Alex Pereira at UFC 287?
At this point, it's a bit hard to predict what the outcome will be of the UFC 287 MMA rematch and the fourth combat sports bout between Israel Adesanya and current champion Alex Pereira. 'Stylebender' has an opportunity to find redemption for all the losses suffered at the hands of 'Poatan'.
It goes without saying that the former champion will be extremely focused for this fight. To win, he needs a solid game plan and shouldn't get sucked into a firefight with his Brazilian counterpart.
Adesanya has more experience grappling inside the octagon than Pereira, being a purple belt in jiu-jitsu under multi-time ADCC champion Andre Galvao.
Alex Pereira has former LHW champ Glover Teixeira in his corner, however, he still needs to make strides in the grappling department.
It might seem like the pressure might be on Pereira for this bout, as his rise to the title was very quick. He still has to be tested by the other four fighters in the middleweight division's top five.
What's interesting to note is the fact that Pereira had also set his eyes on Robert Whittaker and Jamahal Hill, indicating that his focus on Adesanya might not be at 100%.
Will Israel Adesanya be able to capitalize on any possible holes in Pereira's game and mindset? We'll have to wait and find out.
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya will run it back at UFC 287 🔁🏆 https://t.co/zGDCFtUuKF