Israel Adesanya had no business climbing the octagon last UFC 290 after Dricus Du Plessis dealt a more favored Robert Whittaker with a TKO.
However, he was there and took the winner's attention, even calling the South African the "N-word." He also pointed out that he was his "South African brother."
Former UFC middleweight title challenger Chael Sonnen, who at the height of his career is known for his trash-talking, thinks Du Plessis got The Stylebender's attention -- that the current UFC middleweight champion lost his mind over the South African.
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That is not a knock on Adesanya. He just thought that Adesanya was chasing good competition.
"I have never seen anybody come through this sport that has controlled their career more than Israel Adesanya," Sonnen said in his show on his Youtube channel.
"Nobody has called their shot, and I do mean nobody. Du Plessis wasn't ranked high enough to get the fight with Izzy, which is what tonight in the Whittaker fight was about. And now the ranking of Du Plessis, who will come Tuesday morning be the No. 1 contender, is right in line with what Izzy says. And that's the competitor, never looking for the easy way."
What triggered the confrontation?
The confrontation seems random, but Adesanya explained that he only wanted to educate Du Plessis on the meaning of a South African.
He was pointing out that Du Plessis is challenging his ethnicity. Israel was born in Nigeria but moved to New Zealand by age 10.
"We know who the real African is, I breathe African air,' all that kind of stuff - how the f*** are you going to question me, Francis, and Kamaru's blackness or African-ness? Who the f*** are you? So I had to put that out there. I want to educate him," he explained during an appearance at the MMA Hour show.
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