Israel Adesanya has explained why he got emotional ahead of his fight with Dricus du Plessis.
‘The Last Stylebender’ tried to become a three-time middleweight champion when he fought Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 in August 2024 – but he fell short in a fourth-round submission loss to the South African superstar.
Pre-fight, Israel Adesanya broke down in tears during a fiery UFC 305 press conference.
Many believed it was his opponent’s trash talk that triggered the emotional display, but the man himself has now clarified that something else set him off.
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Israel Adesanya explains emotional press conference display
Israel Adesanya recently named Sean Strickland as the opponent he hated the most during an appearance on the Pound4Pound podcast co-hosted by former UFC champions Karmaru Usman and Henry Cejudo.
‘Triple C’ was somewhat surprised Adesanya didn’t pick Du Plessis after their infamous press conference.
“That one was different,” the New Zealander said of his rivalry with the current 185lb king.
“People were like, ‘Ah, he made you cry’. He didn’t make me cry.
“Okay, I’ll tell you what it is. I was talking about my mom.
“I used to go to my mom’s job because she was studying to be a nurse. So, we’d go to the bank to clean at like 4am, get back home, get ready for school, and then go to school.
“I mentioned that and I saw my mom in the front [row] and she kind of welled up. When mom welled up, it hit me in the feels.
“So, it wasn’t him, it was my mom, seeing her emotional kind of got me emotional.”
What’s next for Israel Adesanya?
Adesanya’s shock knockout loss to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia in February made it three defeats in a row for the MMA and kickboxing legend.
Adesanya recently linked up with David Goggins to prepare for his eagerly anticipated comeback.
The 35-year-old has named Strickland as the fighter he wants to face when he returns to MMA.
“I told Hunter [Campbell], already told my coach here, it’s time. I know who, I have a feeling who I wanna fight,” Adesanya said during his pre-workout chat with Goggins. “You’ll like this one. I can get some get-back [on] Sean Strickland.
“He beat me fair and square in Sydney, 5-0. Just whooped my a– badly.
“That was one of the things what made me realize I need to slow down in my activity. I was fighting 3-4 a year as a champion. So I’m like, I’m gonna pull back now because I’m older.
“I’m doing things different. I don’t wanna make excuses because he beat me. But then I just wanna show him if he beat me at my best. So, this time I’m gonna come in and correct.”