"He's the Muhammad Ali of MMA" - WWE legend Booker T hails Israel Adesanya as a "generational talent"
Booker T shared glowing praise for Israel Adesanya after their meeting at UFC 271.
The WWE legend spoke about Adesanya's skills inside the octagon and also labeled him as the 'Muhammad Ali' of MMA.
Impressed with Adesanya's star power and flashy, outspoken persona, Booker T said:
"[I was] humbled [after meeting Israel Adesanya], in a word. Just because, it takes guys like [Adesanya] to keep the guys like me relevant. And I understand that, I get it. For Izzy to actually pay respect to Booker T, it just lets me know how I made him feel as a young kid growing up... He's a performer, he's the Muhammad Ali of the MMA world and I tell you, he's a generational talent. They only come along few and far between."
Watch Booker T's entire appearance on The MMA Hour below:
Muhammad Ali is considered by many to be the greatest boxer of all time. Ali was a multi-time heavyweight champion. However, he was also known for being an activist and philanthropist.
Ali was also an entertainer in the boxing ring. Adesanya, on his part, has dominated the middleweight division. However, 'The Last Stylebender' is also known for flashy entrances, mind games and eccentric celebrations.
Israel Adesanya was last in action at UFC 271. The Kiwi defended his middleweight title by successfully defeating Robert Whittaker.
At the post-fight press conference, 'The Last Stylebender' couldn't hold his excitement about sighting the retired WWE superstar.
Watch Adesanya's reaction to seeing Booker T at UFC 271 below:
Israel Adesanya spoke about joining WWE in the past
Israel Adesanya revealed in an interview that him joining WWE in the future is not entirely out of the question.
Before facing Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259, 'The Last Stylebender' spoke to BT Sport in March 2021. He spoke in retrospect about meeting numerous WWE superstars from the 'Attitude Era':
“I’ve never spoken to them [WWE] about it directly, but I speak to, a few, well, a couple of guys from the 'Attitude Era', my era. Never spoken about it. But yeah, growing up, that was before I even knew what the UFC was, that existed, that [WWE] was definitely a dream of mine; or a path to, I guess, being where I’m at right now in the public eye, being a WWE superstar. So, yeah, it definitely is a possibility.”
Watch Adesanya speak about the WWE in the video below:
The 'Attitude Era' featured a significant amount of adult and taboo content. However, it is often regarded as one of the best times in WWE.
Whether we'll see Adesanya in WWE like other UFC fighters such as Ronda Rousey is still a question that is hard to answer. Especially when the Kiwi is on a path to establishing a dominant championship reign in the UFC.