"Tell them why you did it" - Israel Adesanya accuses Sean Strickland of 'selling his soul' to Monster Energy Drink after new deal
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is set to defend his title for a seventh time against No.5 ranked contender Sean Strickland at UFC 293. The two middleweights will square off on September 9 in Sydney, Australia.
Both the fighters have engaged in intense trash talk in the lead up to the fight and things boiled over in the press conference. Strickland has continuously highlighted Adesanya's time spent in China and called him out for not representing his countries of origin.
Adesanya hit back in the press conference and listed countries, declaring himself a worthy 'world champion'. He also made a reference to UFC 243, where he won against Robert Whittaker and unified the middleweight title, kickstarting his reign of dominance in the division.
“Hey, I’m a Chinese champion, I’m a South African champion, a Brazilian, a New Zealand champion, that’s what’s called being a world champion. And that is never gonna go away. That’s a world champion. So it could be whatever you want, I think some people are still salty about UFC 243.”
Israel Adesanya also questioned Sean Strickland's morals and his endorsement with Monster Energy. He also maintained that he was happy with Prime, the drink company co-founded by social media stars Logan Paul and KSI.
“Sell your soul again to Monster, tell ‘em how you do it. I’m not gonna bring it up but it’s okay. Sunday I’m going to knock this motherf****r out and that’s all I give a f**k about. Hey, you sold your soul for Monster, you sold your soul to that Monster. I can look in the mirror and be happy. I’m in my Prime.”
Check out their argument in the press conference below [27:19]:
Sean Strickland calls Israel Adesanya opportunistic and 'spineless'
There have been no shortage of insults traded between Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland.
In an interview with MMA Junkie's Mike Bohn, Strickland claimed that 'The Last Stylebender' will be down to do anything that enhances his image or earns him money.
'Tarzan' maintained that he respected his opponent as a kickboxer but not as a man.
"Izzy is the f***ing definition of spineless. That man will jump on all ball, any bandwagon that does him good. Look at me, a man of the people... Izzy would sell his f***ing ass for the dollar amount... One of the best kickboxers in the world. I admit that. But as far as being a man, I don’t know what the f**k happened to you.”
Check out his comments below: