Israel Adesanya is maintaining a positive mental attitude ahead of Saturday night’s must-win title fight against newly crowned champion Alex Pereira, despite the fact his nemesis has now beaten him twice in kickboxing and once in the Octagon.
“F*** all the bulls***,” Adesanya said on the DC & RC show. “He and I know, f*** the fans, the reporters, all that. He and I know exactly what I can do to him. I know what he can do to me. Each time I’ve fought him, I’m always winning until I’m not. If it was like say he just beat my ass from f****** bell to bell then f***, I’d probably still be this confident, I’d still talk s***, but it’s not been the case. I’m always beating him, I’m always dominating him until he finds that way to win.
“That gives me a challenge. I love challenges. It gives me a challenge to rise to the occasion. Example: this weekend it gives me an opportunity to remind and show people how great I am. I love being in this position because not everybody can be in this position and thrive. I can.”
The former middleweight kingpin is also drawing strength from the fact that he already has a proven record of success, and he’s eager to remind everyone who might have forgotten why he came to be one of the biggest stars in the sport.
“We live in this goldfish era where people forget exactly what’s happening in my history because people forget, that’s just what it is. I don’t blame them, it’s human nature. But it takes me and staying true to myself, staying true to my team, and staying true to my values as a man and as a fighter. That’s what’s gonna get the job done this weekend.”
