Going into UFC 305, Israel Adesanya had the opportunity to get back his UFC middleweight championship. However, The ‘Last Stylebender’ was unable to beat the champion Dricus Du Plessis. During the fight, many fans thought Izzy wanted to replicate Max Holloway‘s signature move but that wasn’t the case.
The fight was quite entertaining and both Izzy and Du Plessis were evenly matched until DDP got the submission. Just before the submission, Izzy pointed at the canvas which looked like Max Holloway’s signature move from UFC 300. However, in reality, Adesanya was just telling DDP that he didn’t get rocked but instead tripped which ultimately cost him the fight.
I was moving and then my right ankle rolled and I tripped as he was throwing… What I said to him was like, ‘I tripped, you didn’t rock me.’ I didn’t want him to think he rocked me or anything, but again, in hindsight, I think that moment, he used that as a moment to just capitalize so then he just closed the distance on me straight away.
Israel Adesanya via his YouTube channel
As expected, many made fun of Izzy after that moment which forced the fighter to reveal the true intentions of his actions. After the iconic fight at UFC 300, the Max Holloway reference has gone viral in the MMA community. After pointing at the canvas, Holloway and Justin Gaethje decided to swing wildly with the ‘Blessed’ getting the knockout.
Nevertheless, throughout the fight, Israel Adesanya looked sharp and his striking was also up to the mark. In retaliation, DDP landed some heavy punches and with his unorthodox fighting style was able to pressure Izzy. Despite the loss, many experts and fans credited Izzy for his performance including his teammates.
Israel Adesanya’s City kickboxing teammate and former UFC champion reviews UFC 305
Dricus Du Plessis had a great plan going into the fight and was able to implement it effectively. According to UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall, DDP systematically broke down Israel Adesanya which is never easy. Adesanya did well defending multiple takedowns but it wasn’t enough.
After the fight, the champ showed great respect towards Adesanya and mentioned how tough it was for him to get the submission. Similarly, former UFC featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski also credited his teammate, Izzy for his performance. However, according to Volk, DDP was extremely tough at night.
I thought Izzy was looking great. I actually started getting a little confident, like, ‘Here we go, now it’s about to happen.’ You could see that the finish was coming…I was pretty much saying that Izzy was very strong and sharp, landing nice, clean shots and even hurting Dricus. So I was like, ‘Alright, this is it, the finish is coming.’ But Dricus was tough.
Alexander Volkanovski via his YouTube channel
Alexander Volkanovski’s reaction to Dricus Du Plessis vs Israel Adesanya:
“I thought Izzy was looking great. I actually started getting a little confident, like, ‘Here we go, now it’s about to happen.’ You could see that the finish was coming—I was thinking for Izzy, right?… pic.twitter.com/X7gRDrOqgy
— MMA.PROS.PICK (@MMAPROSPICK) August 19, 2024
Ahead of the fight, the Aussie had predicted Adesanya to get a finish over Du Plessis but it didn’t happen. Although, he wasn’t the only one who got it wrong. The same goes for Canadian rapper Drake who lost a whopping $450K placing a bet in favor of Izzy. Nevertheless, it would be interesting to see what’s next for Adesanya after back-to-back losses.
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