Israel Adesanya hit-back at Henry Cejudo after the former double champ claimed his KO victory against Alex Pereira was a “Hail Mary”.
At UFC 287, Adesanya and Pereira stepped into the octagon for their rematch. The Brazilian entered the cage as the defending champion, previously finishing the Nigerian New Zealander back at UFC 281.
History would not repeat itself, however, as ‘The Last Stylebender’ shocked the world by landing a stunning combination of punches to knockout his rival in the second round and reclaim the title.
The finish came whilst Adesanya was backed up against the fence and eating shots from Pereira. Cejudo claimed that ‘Izzy’s’ combination was a “Hail Mary” move because he was under fire. Speaking on his YouTube channel, ‘Triple C’ said:
“Pereira had him hurt to the leg. … Israel just curled up and threw that right hand, went for broke (He) threw the Hail Mary and caught him and took him out.”
Israel Adesanya has now responded to Henry Cejudo’s comments on his YouTube channel.
The 33-year-old referred to him as a “munchkin” and stated the the finish was calculated, not a lucky punch. Adesanya said:
“He’s gonna come close, so I’m like ‘Okay, you’re there now.’ So I gave him a few shots because I knew I could show and I could see everything. Then, checkmate, boom [the KO punch lands]. What f*cking Hail Mary is that? It’s free style. Let me go back to the munchkin…we’re not the same munchkin. We are not the same. I am a freestyler.”
