The TakedownIsrael Adesanya critics need to quiet down – UFC champ right to gloat after Paulo Costa’s pre-fight antics
- Instead of acting offended, MMA fans on Twitter should suck it up if they don’t like seeing Adesanya poking fun
- Costa’s mouth wrote cheques his fists couldn’t cash with memes, jokes, and insults – and the Brazilian pay the price for it by eating some humble pie
After taking all the pre-fight trolling from Paulo Costa in his stride – the personal insults, the memes, the silly videos – Israel Adesanya clearly enjoyed humbling him on Fight Island at the weekend.
But some thought the middleweight champ went too far with his celebrations after a second-round TKO in the UFC 253 main event in Abu Dhabi.
First, “The Last Stylebender” (20-0) dry-humped the 29-year-old Brazilian Costa (13-1) when the referee stepped in to stop the punches Adesanya was raining down on his beaten foe. Then, Adesanya performed WWE legend Booker T’s “Spinaroonie” dance move on the canvas while “The Eraser” received medical treatment, having been ruthlessly picked apart. Next came the run around the Octagon – perhaps taunting Costa that he still had plenty left in the tank, or making fun of Costa’s assertion that he was just going to run away for five rounds.
Adesanya wasn’t finished – he headed over to Costa’s corner and goaded Costa’s coach Eric Albarracin with a crude gesture, after the American had talked a little more trash, just as he had down throughout the build-up.
“It was unnecessary and it was crass,” was UFC analyst and former fighter Dan Hardy’s assessment of Adesanya’s celebrations. “It’s not good for the sport to be seeing those things, but at the same time we see a lot of the superstars they stand out, they create headlines because of the things that they do. [Adesanya] was urinating on the octagon in his UFC debut. We shouldn’t be surprised by these things.”