Israel Adesanya breaks down in tears at UFC 305 press conference before Dricus Du Plessis fight
The former middleweight champion, who challenges rival Du Plessis on Saturday, quickly exited the stage
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Israel Adesanya tearfully took umbrage with a claim by his opponent Dricus Du Plessis on Friday, ahead of the pair’s UFC 305 main event.
On Saturday (17 August), former two-time champion Adesanya will challenge Du Plessis for the middleweight title in Perth, Australia, as they look to settle a year-long grudge.
That grudge began when Du Plessis vowed to become the first “real African” UFC champion. The South African clarified that he meant the first not only to have been born in Africa but also to have trained there throughout his career.
Adesanya, born in Nigeria and representing New Zealand, took issue with that claim last summer in a heated face-to-face. And on Friday (16 August), the matter arose again at the UFC 305 pre-fight press conference.
“He touched a subject there, because I do this for my family,” Adesanya said tearfully. “I do this for the people I love, and I’ll fight for you forever – I swear to God,” he added, pointing at the front row.
“Watch this, look: I’m a human being, I’m a man. I can cry and whoop your ass at the same time.
“I feel the love from the crowd. First time I fought here [was UFC 221], that was February 2018, that was me making my dream come true. Sunday I’m gonna f***ing kill your dreams, b***h,” he told Du Plessis. “I want to kill your dreams.”
Adesanya then wiped tears from his eyes and quickly exited the stage, before returning for his face-off with Du Plessis.
Earlier in the press conference, Adesanya was asked whether he will bring the title back to Nigeria if he wins this weekend. The audience member asking the question also said “someone” had made the fight “about culture”.
Du Plessis acknowledged that comment, before Adesanya interjected: “Bro, shut the f*** up, you don’t even know anything about my story. You have no idea who the f*** I am.”
Again fighting back tears, the former champion said: “My father and myself had to wake up at 4am and clean the banks, while my mum studied to be a nurse. You don’t know my f***ing story. I will show you who you are Sunday, so right now, shut the f*** up.”
Du Plessis hit back: “The first residing African [champion], you can’t change that, impossible. You can’t change those facts.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments