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“He Tries So Hard to Look Cool”: Fans in Splits After Israel Adesanya’s Audacious Demand of ESPY Fighter of the Year 2023 Award

Published 04/26/2023, 2:06 AM EDT

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It seems Israel Adesanya is still riding the high from the knockout win over Alex Pereira. The two-time UFC middleweight champion recently made an audacious claim that invited some strong reactions from the fans.

At UFC 287, Israel Adesanya finally got one back against Alex Pereira by knocking him out cold. With the win, Adesanya earned his title back and is tied 1-1 with Pereira in the UFC. However, the Brazilian is 3-1 up against ‘Izzy’ over the four meetings in their careers. In fact, many fans hold this over Adesanya as he celebrates his recent win over ‘Poatan.’

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Nevertheless, ‘Stylebender’ pays no heed to his critics and prefers to revel in his success. The 33-year-old has been quite active on social media, constantly trolling his critics and his rival. For the first time in seven years, Adesanya is in the driving seat for these exchanges.

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In a recent tweet, the New Zealander shared screenshots of a conversation with a contact where he discussed the annual ESPY awards. In the chats, we see Adesanya make an audacious attempt as he tries to lay claim to three different awards.

Fans react to Israel Adesanya wanting three ESPY awards

In the chat, Israel Adesanya asks if has been nominated for the ESPY Awards. He also makes a suggestion for nomination in three different categories- Comeback of the Year, KO of the Year, and Fighter of the Year. His contact then replied that the ESPYs only do Fighter of the Year category and ‘Izzy’ responded “I’ll take it.”

However, many fans had differing opinions about the subject. One of them said that Adesanya had to win a second belt at light heavyweight to earn the award.

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Another one acknowledged his win but mentioned other UFC stars like Brandon Moreno and Islam Makhachev who also had a remarkable year.

One fan sarcastically agreed he should get “KO of the year for sure.

A few others also complimented his knockout win.

Meanwhile, another fan said there wasn’t anyone except Adesanya in contention for the same.

There were also those that did not agree with the claim. One of them pointed out ‘Izzy’ only had one win this year.

Another took an issue with his double standards towards ESPN.

One other fan said Jon Jones would seal the deal once he beats Stipe Miocic.

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Israel Adesanya has been at the center of attention for his rivalry with Alex Pereira. His knockout win also earned him commendations from many. But is it enough to secure him an ESPY?

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Watch This StoryWho will Israel Adesanya fight after UFC 287?

Give us your take on the subject in the comments below.

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Written by:

Yeswanth Praveen

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Yeswanth Praveen is a UFC writer at EssentiallySports, having written over 500 articles on the sport. With a Master’s degree in English Literature, Yeswanth expertly combines his writing and storytelling skills with his passion for MMA. He was initially drawn to the sport after the intense rivalry between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov captured his attention.
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Edited by:

Rohini Kottu