Israel Adesanya was involved in a road rage incident on Wednesday in Auckland, New Zealand.
According to a report from TMZ, the two-time UFC middleweight champion was parking his car when a man approached him and allegedly hurled a racial slur at Adesanya before challenging the MMA star to a fight. The altercation was caught on camera by a bystander which has since gone viral.
https://x.com/DovySimuMMA/status/1831634856767365475?ref_=
While it’s unclear what either one of them is saying, their body language makes it pretty clear that they’re not friends. If that weren’t obvious enough, Adesanya appears to spit at the man during the incident.
“Try me,” Adesanya responded to the confrontational man. “Yeah, I get paid for this sh*t.”
“F*** off you little b*tch. F*** off. Go drive your beat up f***ing sh*t, you’re a f***ing b*tch. F*** you. F*** you, b*tch.”
The sound of passing traffic drowned out most of the exchange, but the video’s final moments hinted that things were about to escalate.
Adesanya dared the man to take action before spitting in his direction.
“Try me. I pray for you to try me,” Adesanya said before he spit at the man. “I pray for you to try me. I pray for you to try me.”
Fortunately, the whole thing fizzled out before things could get physical
Israel Adesanya Issues Statement on Road Rage Incident
In a statement to The New Zealand Herald, Adesanya shed some light on the situation and revealed that he has already been in contact with local police to press charges against the alleged aggressor.
“I am extremely disappointed after an incident on Wednesday when a random member of the public stopped his car, racially abused me, and challenged me to a fight,” Adesanya said. “We have been in contact with police and will be pressing charges.
“On Wednesday morning, I was leaving a cafe on K Rd when a passing car slowed, and an occupant began yelling racial abuse and challenging me to fight.
“I smiled, waved it off, and continued to my car. The vehicle stopped, and the abuse continued. I again waved it off. The car then parked, and the passenger got out, approached me aggressively, continued his torrent of abuse, and demanded I fight him. I tried to de-escalate the situation repeatedly. As he got closer, I asked bystanders to call the police.
“He then entered my personal space, and I felt threatened. To protect myself, I became more forceful in my language and defensive. Though he paused, the abuse continued, so I left him with some choice words, cautiously moved to my car, and drove away. It’s ridiculous that I can’t buy a pie after training without some idiot screaming despicable things and asking for a fight while his mates film from the sidelines.
“Threatening violence is no joke. It’s very dangerous, and incidents like this must not be glorified online. I hope in the future people say something rather than get their phones out to film.”
Adesanya’s last appearance inside the Octagon came at UFC 305 last month. Returning after a year-long layoff, ‘The Last Stylebender’ sought to reclaim the middleweight title he lost last September. Ultimately, he came up short, suffering a fourth-round submission loss at the hands of reigning 185-pound titleholder Dricus Du Plessis.
Adesanya has now lost three of his last four.
