Israel Adesanya was in the audience for UFC Fight Night: Uriah Hall vs Anderson Silva to pay his respects to the retiring Silva. So was Kevin Holland, who won his fourth fight of 2020 on the card.
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Holland started talking trash to Izzy after his win over Charlie Ontiveros, something The Schmo asked Izzy about after the fight card was over. Israel Adesanya directly responded to Holland and said he felt it was disrespectful.
“All my fans, you know how they get. My fans are crazy, really crazy. Like I said, I am a fan of Anderson Silva, but when there was a contract in front of me, I signed to fight him. He’s just a fan but he doesn’t know when the cameras weren’t on when we were at the hotel.
“He wasn’t barking like that, but it was a little disrespectful. But it is what it is. Sometimes fans have misplaced emotions and they don’t know where to put it. You can be a fan of me and still sign on the dotted line to get your ass kicked.”
Israel Adesanya and Kevin Holland
On being asked if he sees a fight against Holland, Izzy said, “With his attitude, I don’t see him going that far. He just has to humble himself and realize the position that he is in. And yeah, he’s got the skills. Like I said, I am not ashamed to say I like his fighting style, I thought he’s dope.
“But when you approach someone like that like at the hotel, like that’s stupid. Are you gonna do something but when the camera’s on the cage and you’re talking all that shit and calling me boy. Say that to my face next time.”
Holland had a big win tonight, but if you look into it, certain discrepancies are found. Even though he took the fight on short notice, he was a massive favorite for the fight. While he delivered and then some with a spectacular finish, a win like this isn’t anything to use as backing to attack the champion of the division. This is similar to Uriah Hall’s comments about Israel Adesanya as well.
Holland is a fantastic fighter and well on his way to complete his ascension to the top of the rankings. However, a ranked opponent would serve his case better. Izzy is fighting for the Light Heavyweight Belt next anyway, so Holland has time to continue building his resume. He clearly wants a fifth fight this year, so he could be well on his way to calling out Izzy with more ammunition next time.
