Israel Adesanya Loses UFC Title, Then Gets Arrested at JFK Airport
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
New York, NY (November 18th, 2022)– On Saturday night, November 12, 2022, Israel ‘The Last Stylebender’ Adesanya, 23-2, of Lagos, Nigeria, by way of New Zealand lost his UFC Middleweight title by knockout to Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira, 7-1, of Sao Paulo, Brazil at UFC 281 in New York City by fifth-round TKO at Madison Square Garden. Adesanya, the UFC Middleweight champion since 2019, lost for the third time in his career to Pereira.
A Pereira right hand sent Adesanya, who had won 12 straight MMA bouts to that point, slumping against the cage, when referee Marc Goddard stopped the bout at 2:01 of the fifth round. The bout had been competitive to that point.
On Wednesday afternoon, November 16, 2022, Adesanya took another blow when he was arrested for possession of brass knuckles in his luggage at John F. International Airport. Tim Simpson, Adesanya’s manager, said the brass knuckles were a gift given by a fan.
Brass knuckles are illegal in the State of New York. First, Adesanya loses his UFC titular belt at Madison Square Garden. Then, Adesanya gets arrested by Port Authority police. In his post fight interview in a mink coat, Adesanya stated “What a life, what a moment, I’m grateful.”
For whatever reason, the ex-champ’s career has gone from world champion to rock bottom in a few days. How can a fighter not know what he puts in his luggage? In a sense, Adesanya went from hero to villain, from icon to something worse. Why this reporter does not believe Adesanya was set up, overall, it is not a good picture after his fall from championship grace. Champions and athletes have to remember the mind of the general public is fickle and adoration can turn to scrutiny in the blink of an eye. Then too, Adesanya has had no luck with Pereira in the ring, and no luck leaving town on this particular occasion. Athletes should be more careful. As his life now stands, besides the arrest, Adesanya is now under indefinite medical suspension.
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