‘My Story Is Still Being Written’ — Interview with Israel Adesanya
January 23, 2024. New Zealand. It’s summertime in the Southern Hemisphere but it seems like Auckland rain didn’t get the memo. My reaction to the weather, however, is just as inappropriate as the weather itself: instead of trying to find shelter in one of the cozy Morningside coffee shops, I’m sitting in a half-open pavilion that is simultaneously an MMA gym.
It feels like in the weeks spent in Auckland, I’ve been to this place more times than I have to the city center. What can I say, I’m a lousy tourist… But in my defense, this isn’t at all what I had planned. The plan was to drop by, leave the souvenirs I brought from Georgia for some of the CKB fighters, (if I’m lucky) get a selfie with one of them, and — after spending the next twenty or so days rolling around golden beaches of Aotearoa — fly back to Tbilisi feeling like my trip was a raging success.
Instead, I’m (once again) greeting athletes, coaches, and the gym staff who are showing up for the afternoon wrestling class. I think they kind of got used to this odd kid from Georgia, who traveled 15,000 km across the world and now insists on spending hours watching them practice… despite repeatedly promising that today “she’s only here for 5 minutes — tops!”. Yeah, this isn’t at all what I had planned. On the other hand, millions of questions I have for their coaches and teammates won’t ask themselves.
The sound of footsteps. For a split second, I take my eyes off the notes I prepared for the interview and turn around. Red t-shirt, black shorts, and a warm, friendly smile — I realize that these words can be used to describe thousands of people in the world. However, today they belong to none other than one of the greatest martial artists of all time, former two-time UFC Middleweight Champion — Israel Adesanya. One of the brightest stars of modern MMA, The Last Stylebender… who I, by some miracle, managed to get a short interview with.
Adesanya’s teammates start to warm up. At the same time, Izzy and I move over to the side and sit down to discuss his career, opponents, and the beautiful violent masterpieces he loves to create so much.
She Loves The Gloves: Izzy, first of all, thanks for meeting with me. I will try my best for these questions to be different from what people usually ask you.
So, a few weeks ago I went back and listened to your two appearances on the Joe Rogan podcast… and was shocked by the difference in your mood. Although these episodes were taped only 1.5 years apart, in the second one you seemed significantly more ‘burnt out’. Would you agree with that assessment?
Adesanya: The second one? Hm… Maybe? That’s a good observation. I haven’t watched them in a while. I see little bits and pieces now and then but haven’t looked at them [in their entirety]. Maybe there’s something to it. The first one was when I had just joined the UFC, right? Was I, like, more spunky?
She Loves The Gloves: Yeah, the mood, the vibe, it just was really different. I mean, at the same time it’s kind of understandable — so much had happened in your life between these recordings. Still, what would you say was the reason for this change? The physical grind?
Adesanya: Yeah, I think maybe it was just the grind. But not the grind of this (he points at the mats, where the practice is now in full swing)… just the attention, the spotlight, the media — all that combined. It takes a toll.
She Loves The Gloves: Eug and I have already talked about it a little, but obviously I want to hear your side of what happened in the Sean Strickland fight. Have you even watched it since then?
Adesanya: Yeah, I watched it once. I wanted to watch it for myself, just to see what I looked like, to compare it to what I felt when I was in there. I’ll tell you one thing: just look at the open workout before that fight. The UFC doesn’t really do them anymore, but I had to attend one before that fight. There’s a moment when I have two kids up on stage and I’m trying to demonstrate how to do push-ups… Just watch the way I do the push-ups. You can see — something’s not right there. I don’t want to say too much. Obviously, Sean is a good fighter and he has a great coach. Normally, I can handle those things in a different way but that night I was just…
She Loves The Gloves: …Off?
Adesanya: Just not fully on… And I don’t want to take anything from Sean. But it’s hard to do what I did — look, he just lost the belt.
She Loves The Gloves: What did you think of that fight between him and Dricus du Plessis, by the way? Sorry, I’ve been on the road and couldn’t watch your reaction video on YouTube.
Adesanya: I thought that Dricus won. But yeah, it’s hard to do what I did — 6 title defenses.
She Loves The Gloves: And that’s in the span of, like, 4 years! And 10 title fights.
Adesanya: Yeah, 4 years, 10 fights. It’s not easy. What he’s accomplished is still amazing, though. He has an amazing story. But my story’s still being written.
She Loves The Gloves: Oh, I do not doubt that. At this point, though, would you rather rematch Sean, or get a fresh matchup, like Dricus?
Adesanya: I don’t care, to be honest. Either one is good for me. If I absolutely had to choose, I’d say Sean, probably… Just because he has that victory over me. And it’s not even about getting it back. Just like it was with Alex [Pereira] — I know I can beat him. I just want to prove it to myself. And after that, he can beat me 10 more times, I don’t care.
She Loves The Gloves: It’s fascinating to hear because Eugene said the same thing — it’s not about proving somebody else wrong, it’s about proving something to ourselves.
Adesanya: People don’t get that I was never that bothered by losing to [Alex] Pereira. I knew I could beat him. All I wanted was to prove it to myself. People are like ‘Well, now you have to do the third fight in MMA’. But I don’t fight for those people. I said this many times: I don’t keep scores, I settle them. Because, say, we fight one more time and I beat him again. Then what? It’s 3–2? And now we have to do another one? Best out of seven?
She Loves The Gloves: I mean, you can’t keep fighting the same guy for your entire life…
Adesanya: Thank you! I just feel like people aren’t really thinking ahead. I am. Me and him, we’ve already spent too much time in the ring together. And, listen, there’s a reason why in the biggest moment of his career he’s calling me out. You know who needs this fight? Not me. He does. You know why it’s his fans who are calling for this fight and not mine? Because we’re on top. Because no matter how many times he’s beaten me: [at UFC 287] I had the biggest win, in the most epic way possible, with the most magnificent story…
And he also has a great story. To beat me [in kickboxing], and then beat me again in New York. That’s a great story. And then to become the double-champ in both kickboxing and MMA — that’s an accomplishment. But they want this fight because, in their hearts, they know that I’m the one who laughs last because I’m laughing best. And now people are talking about making it for the UFC 300. But again, I don’t fight for them. I fight for me.
I only have so much time left in this game. I’m not going to spend the next 3 or 4 fights fighting the same guy, just to prove something to those who, at the end of the day, don’t really give a shit about me.
She Loves The Gloves: But, honestly, from a completely selfish standpoint: I feel like if the two of you fought a million times, I’d still watch all of them and never get bored. It’s just such a treat!
Adesanya: Oh, yeah, I get it. It’s always action-packed — and then we go, and then we roll! He’s a hard fight… but he knows I’m a hard fight for him as well.
She Loves The Gloves: Actually, I feel like he’s always given you your props.
But to go back to the first fight for a moment. It was just so surreal. First of all, the UFC cards air at, like, 5–6 AM in Georgia… And I have no idea what my neighbors think of me because every Sunday morning I’m screaming in my room like a maniac. But during that last round of the UFC 281… I honestly lost my voice yelling.
Adesanya: Was that during the one in New York? (laughs)
She Loves The Gloves: During both of them, actually, ha-ha. Still, I do get your point, that you can’t just keep fighting the same guy for your whole career... But while we’re on this topic: what did it feel like, to finally knock Alex Pereira out?
Adesanya: Ah, it felt awesome. But again, it just felt like something I already knew I could do. I mean, just look at the tape!
First fight. Kickboxing. I was beating him, I thought I won… But the judges gave it to him and there wasn’t much I could do about that. Second fight. We’re in Brazil, I’m beating him again… And he knocks me out! Third time. New York. I rock him, take him to school, take him down… and then — BRUH! I’m thinking, “I know I can beat this guy, because I’m always touching him, always almost beating him!”.
But during that last fight, I was like: I will die in the cage but I will beat this guy. I just knew I had to beat him.
She Loves The Gloves: You know what this reminds me of? When you’re playing a video game, and you keep getting killed in the same spot, by the same opponent. When his health bar is almost empty, you think you’ve finally won but still, at the last moment, he somehow manages to kill you.
Adesanya: Exactly! But I made sure I defeated my ‘final boss’, and moved to the next level.
She Loves The Gloves: There are certain rivalries in sports. You know, Borg and McEnroe, Messi and Ronaldo… I feel like, as a result, these rivalries make both athletes better. Both move to the next level. And I honestly think that we, as fans, are privileged to be able to witness it happen with the two of you.
Adesanya: Ah, thank you. I appreciate that.
She Loves The Gloves: Okay, I’ll stop fangirling now. By the way, one of the Georgian soccer players — Khvicha Kvaratskhelia — was so inspired by your win that he actually celebrated his own goals in the same way [with three arrows].
Adesanya: Oh, that’s cool! I’ve seen some people do it in the NFL, during football games. Do you have a video of it? Send it to Eugene after we’re done and he’ll show it to me.
She Loves The Gloves: Of course, I’ll make sure to do that… Anyway, we’ve talked a lot about Alex. But you’ve had some other fights in your UFC career that were just as outstanding. Of course, I’m talking about matches against Kelvin Gastelum and Anderson Silva. So, out of these three wins — Alex, Kelvin, Silva — which one would you relive?
Adesanya: Oh, Silva. 100% Silva. Because it was just fun. I made sure I appreciated it in that moment, but I feel like I could have appreciated it even more.
She Loves The Gloves: I bet it felt surreal…
Adesanya: There was only one moment in the third round when it hit me: shit, I’m fighting Anderson Silva. But then I was like, nah, this is my cage! And I was able to get right back into the flow of the fight.
She Loves The Gloves: I’ll be honest - for me, that moment in the Gastelum fight, before the start of the fifth round… When you were saying that you were prepared to die… That was some epic shit.
Adesanya: That was a great fight. But I wouldn’t want to go through it again, because it took such a toll on my body.
She Loves The Gloves: I think that can be said for both of you. Because I don’t think he’s ever been the same since that fight…
Adesanya: Yeah, but I got much better after that fight. Because I realized what these wars can do to you.
She Loves The Gloves: Alright. We’ve talked a lot about the past. Let’s talk about the future. February 17th. Your guy, Alex Volkanovski is facing my fellow countryman, Ilia Topuria. Give me your thoughts on this matchup.
Adesanya: Topuria really is a matador. He’s got that grace about him. When he fights, he’s like a general. His boxing’s awesome. He’s got the look, he’s a superstar in the making — even without the belt.
But I know Volk. I know greatness. And I’m going to go out there and watch him finish this camp because I want to draw his energy. I want to draw from him. I want to see him in that last week, and I want to feel that energy.
She Loves The Gloves: Speaking of energy… I know that you like to connect certain periods of your life and career to certain themes or characters. In the Whittaker fight it was “The Death Note”, in the Cannonier match— The Undertaker. In the rematch with Alex [Pereira] there was the collar, the unleashing of your ‘inner dog’. But what about this current arc, what defines it?
Adesanya: To be honest, I haven’t found a theme for it yet. These things, they come to me randomly and I use them if they feel right. So I’m sure something will come to me when the time’s right. But at the moment I’m just focusing on me. I’m writing history… Re-writing history, cuz we write history!
She Loves The Gloves: Well, I can’t wait to read it. A couple of weeks ago, you did an interview with Teddy Atlas. During the interview, there was a moment when Teddy mentioned a certain quote and it provoked a visible emotional reaction from you. It was a quote about giving it your best and not taking the easy way out. It seemed like it meant something special to you. Can I ask what it meant? Or would that be too personal?
Adesanya: Yeah, there was a moment, something that felt relatable. But I think it’s something that I’d like to keep to myself for now, if it’s okay with you.
She Loves The Gloves: Of course, that’s totally cool. I think we all have small things and moments like this. It’s a feeling many can understand and relate to.
Adesanya: Just there have been times in my career, even after big wins in the UFC, even when I knocked someone out… I feel like even my own brain tried to take certain parts of it away from me. So I try to stay locked in.
She Loves The Gloves: As you should… So, what inspires you at this stage?
Adesanya: Honestly? Fighting for something bigger than myself. Family, friends, my team. People that love me. I have a lot of love in my life… But sometimes hate can be loud. For whatever reason, we, as humans, are wired to focus on it more. But now I know not to tap into it.
For example, some journalist tags me in some dumb post on Instagram. I see it has 600 comments. Sure, I don’t have the time to read all those comments but I don’t need to even open them. Why click on something when I know it’s only going to make me feel like shit? Honestly, the only time when I’ll allow myself to indulge in this is during fight week. When I feel like I could use that extra ‘venom’. Just a little bit.
She Loves The Gloves: I feel like this is the perfect, healthy approach.
Izzy, once again, thank you so much for the interview! I am truly grateful that I got to talk to you. I’ll let you go now, before your coach calls immigration on me… But before that, I have one last question. How do you want to be remembered?
Adesanya: Uuuh… In the game? I came in, I wasn’t scared to fight anyone. And I had fun while I was fighting. Like, you can see that I really enjoyed the art of fighting. I like to paint a masterpiece. Take that fifth round between Strickland and Dricus — that’s not for me. Even in the fifth round of the Gastelum fight I was never just swinging like that, I was still sharp.
I want to be remembered as Israel Adesanya. One of the best fighters in history. Adesanya is a powerful name — it always has been, even before the fighting. But now it’s going to be even more powerful. For my children’s children’s children. And for the future.
(Original article published on Jan 25, 2024)
