“He didn’t want to feel me,” Israel Adesanya exposes Sean Strickland for failing to hold eye contact in intense face off

UFC middleweight champion gives his opinion on his opponent Sean Strickland avoiding any eye contact at the face off prior to UFC 293.

“He didn’t want to feel me,” Israel Adesanya exposes Sean Strickland for failing to hold eye contact in intense face off

Israel Adesanya (Image courtesy: YouTube)

UFC 293 is all set to entertain the MMA world. UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will take on #5 ranked contender Sean Strickland in the main event. The trash talk and the insults leading up to this fight have fueled the bad blood between the fighters. The title fight remains the main attraction for the event. Before the fight day, both fighters faced off in front of the crowd. In a twist, Strickland chose not to make eye contact with Adesanya.

This move brought a lot of questions to people’s minds regarding Strickland’s confidence. A conventional face-off consists of both fighters in a serious staredown. When Israel Adesanya was asked about his opinion on Strickland’s move, he said, “I think it’s a tactic from his end. He wanted to disengage from this moment, which I think is smart. But again it’s not something like he means to do it. He wants to disengage because he didn’t want to feel me.“

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The champion showed a confident front in that faceoff. Many fans will hope that Strickland’s choice in the staredown had nothing to do with any fear over his opponent. This possibility could largely affect his chances in the fight.

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The fight will take place at Sydney Olympic Park’s Qudos Bank Arena. A major set of things could be in play in this fight that could decide the future of the middleweight division. Despite Adesanya’s great record, his stumble against Alex Periera should not factor in this fight. Because Strickland will be ready to jump on any weakness his opponent shows.

Related: “H**tai too” – Israel Adesanya slyly references Hollywood star Samuel L Jackson’s ‘anime’ obsession amidst recent heat from UFC 293 rival

Israel Adesanya and his rivalry with Monster energy drink

Israel Adesanya
Israel Adesanya performing a cross sign on the Monster Energy drink logo(Image courtesy: Essentially Sports)

One of the key highlights from the press conference between Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland focused on the debate over the Monster Energy drink. Reports suggest that Adesanya accused Strickland of ‘selling his soul’ for choosing to affiliate with the energy drink brand.

In the past, Israel Adesanya has shown his dislike towards the brand at many events. His infamous win against Periera at UFC 287 led to the champion making a cross at the Monster Energy logo in the center of the octagon. This feud is related to the Monster energy executive Hans Molenkamp. Speculations suggested that Molenkamp played a huge role in the sponsorship deals with the brand and attached any relevancy to the fighter.

This deal used to go forward after compliance with many bizarre and unnatural demands. Further, this controversy led to many fighters showing their distaste for the brand. This was the prime reason for Adesanya’s questions and remarks about Strickland’s affiliation with the brand Moster energy drink.

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