Popular Nigerian kickboxer, Israel Adesany, has finally reacted to his defeat on the UFC 281 belt.
The Lagos-born fighter had suffered a shocking defeat at the fifth round by technical knockout to Brazilian kickboxer, Alex Pereira, at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
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During an interview, Israel said, “I’ve been doing this, this is my third fight in 10 months.
“Every time I fight, I risk losing what you guys deem as the prestigious which it is— the belt and all that.
“He hit my peroneal nerve, so that’s why my footwork was compromised. Even when I tripped and went backward, I had to do the roly-poly. Because I was like, ‘Oh, I just tripped over, it’s not like me. So, kudos to him for investing in those calf kicks because it cost me.”
The Nigerian kickboxer also took to his Instagram account to celebrate and to assure his fans that he was doing fine.
He wrote, “What a life! And still standing 10 toes deep in my light. Gratitude will always be my attitude, through the good, bad, ugly, and beautiful moments in this wild and crazy life. So thank you for the energy. Bless you xo.”
Adesanya’s defeat is his first loss in the middleweight division and the second time losing to the Brazilian fighter.
In 2016, Pereira had ended Adesanya’s 12-fight winning streak via decision victory before the two men met again in a rematch that ended in tragedy for the UFC middleweight legend.
Despite Israel’s loss, he gets to earn $2.6 million.
