WATCH: Israel Adesanya provides NSFW evidence to dismiss homosexual allegations from Paulo Costa
Israel Adesanya and Brazilian MMA fighter Paulo Costa have been engaged in a long-running rivalry. While the rivalry began with genuine disdain, it has recently evolved into friendly banter, with Adesanya acknowledging that Costa is entertaining on Twitter.
Costa has frequently made fun of Adesanya for his unconventional style and flamboyant demeanor, both of which defy conventional gender stereotypes. Adesanya ignores the criticism and responds in his own unique way.
Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa locked horns at UFC 253. 'Borrachinha' was anticipated to pose the greatest challenge to Adesanya's title reign, but the Nigerian-born Kiwi stomped all over his ambitions. 'The Last Stylebender' celebrated his second-round technical knockout victory by infamously "dry-humping" Costa before he could get back on his feet.
Costa recently ridiculed Adesanya and Alex Pereira for burying the hatchet backstage following their clash at UFC 287. The Brazilian mocked Adesanya and wrote:
"Life goals: find a woman who hugs you like he does. Her thought: I'm going to paint my nails pink too."
Israel Adesanya, who's no stranger to talking trash, took to Twitter to provide NSFW (not safe for work) evidence to dismiss homosexual allegations from Paulo Costa. The UFC middleweight champion also included a clip of Andrew Caldwell in his response, who became famous for publicly proclaiming his freedom from homosexuality during a church service and insisting later that he no longer had any desire to engage in homosexual activity.
Adesanya wrote:
"Why does @BorrachinhaMMA keep calling me a “fa**ot/faggy” bro??
Check out the tweet below:
When Israel Adesanya appreciated Paulo Costa for learning English
While Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa may not agree on everything, the UFC middleweight champion admires the Brazilian's Twitter skills.
Costa's self-deprecating humor and sarcastic views on recent UFC developments have made him a "Tweleb" in recent times. This newfound popularity among fans who actively engage with the MMA star may have contributed to the UFC's decision to renegotiate his contract.
Israel Adesanya appeared on Andrew Schultz's podcast FLAGRANT and emphasized the significance of fighters being capable of promoting themselves effectively in English. In light of this, Adesanya gave props to former rival Costa, who he now finds hilarious:
"I love him. On Twitter... I like him. If we have to fight again. I'll still whoop his ass. I'm not cool with him. [But] if I saw him, it wouldn't be like when we fought, 'Grrr, what's up?' I'd be cool, but if he came with the energy, I'd be like, 'Come on, man.' But also, I think he's really funny. His whole shtick with USADA, the secret juice."
Adesanya added:
"And also, kudos to him as well for learning English. A lot of these fighters don't get as big as they need to be because they don't learn English, don't promote themselves, and don't get to the level that they need to get [to]. But he's done that and he's doing the work, so shoutout to Costa."
Check out the full podcast below: