Israel Adesanya is one of the top dogs in the UFC. Needless to say, he makes a good load of money fighting for the premier MMA promotion in the world. However, the former champion of the middleweight division used to work a normal job, making much less money than the millions he is worth now.
Israel Adesanya recently went on ‘The Rock’. During their conversation, ‘The Last Stylebender’ revealed a little email that he got from a gas company where he did some data entry work. It was an email informing a young Adesanya about his pay raise back in August 2012.
I am pleased to advise that your base salary has been increased by 2% to 38,242 per annum effective from 1st June 2012.
Israel Adesanya on The Rock
Hilariously, Adesanya apparently replied, “F****** kidding right”. Adesanya said he intends to frame it and put it on the wall. He was inspired a lot when he saw the email and realized he had come a long way to where he is now worth about $6 million.
Before fighting, Adesanya used to do a couple of jobs. Supposedly, he used to attend many dance competitions as well. Eventually, Adesanya made a career in fighting and became a successful kickboxer. After making it to the UFC in 2018, he shot up to stardom. Now, he is a two-time UFC middleweight champion going for another title fight this August at UFC 305.
Israel Adesanya issues apology to Imane Khelif
Israel Adesanya recently issued an apology to Algerian boxer, Imane Khelif. He addressed the issue during his appearance on The Rock podcast. The apology was prompted by Adesanya’s previous remarks about Khelif amid a gender-eligibility controversy at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Imane Khelif (Via AP News)The controversy attracted significant media attention, and figures like Adesanya and Claressa Shields made public comments. Adesanya later expressed regret for his comments, acknowledging the complexity and sensitivity of the situation.
She wasn’t actually trans. To the lady, my bad, I got that wrong.
Israel Adesanya on The Rock
Imane Khelif, along with Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting, was at the center of a controversy after failing a gender-eligibility test by the International Boxing Association (IBA). The test indicated the presence of XY chromosomes. This led to claims that they were not eligible to compete in the women’s category.
However, Khelif and Lin were permitted to compete at the Olympics due to a genetic condition, which was later clarified to be Swyer Syndrome. It is a condition where individuals with XY chromosomes are born female but may face issues in sexual development.
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