Israel Adesanya’s Antics “Not Good For The Sport”- Says Dan Hardy

Israel Adesanya recently defended his belt against the formerly undefeated challenger, Paulo Costa. The Nigerian born superstar walked over a man who was supposed to be his toughest test to date. He landed a left hook late in the second to end the one-sided UFC 253 main event. 

However, despite all the praise Adesanya has been garnering for his clinical display the past weekend, he has also been subject to criticism for his post-fight antics. As Jason Herzog stepped in to separate the two fighters, ‘The Last Stylebender’ was on top of a turtled challenger. While getting off Costa, he made some vulgar gestures that drew ire from the Brazilian fighter and his camp. 

Israel Adesanya’s celebrations were “crass” says, Dan Hardy 

In a recent interview, the former fighter turned analyst Dan Hardy was asked what he made of Adesanya’s actions post the stoppage. He replied, “It was crass is the truth. It was unnecessary, and it was crass. 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 they do. I mean, he was urinating on the octagon on his UFC debut.”

Hardy further added, “We shouldn’t be surprised by these things. There is a lot of animosity between these guys. And we do act out when we’re in these scenarios. You know when your adrenaline is up, you’ve just won the fight. You’ve got all this energy…..you don’t know what you’re saying in interviews cause your adrenaline is going…… sometimes it is difficult to keep a control of yourself in those circumstances….. When you see someone like that you kinda think well it wasn’t in the spirit of martial arts, and really that’s what we want to be seeing to represent the sport as a whole”

Israel has surely rubbed many people the wrong way with his fight antics. Do you think ‘Izzy’ crossed the line post the stoppage at UFC 253? Or is it a part and parcel of the sport? 

Read: “There Was No Penetration”- Angela Hill Laughs off Israel Adesanya’s Treatment of Paulo Costa