“You don’t even know anything about my story. You have no idea who the f–k I am,” Israel Adesanya fired back, crying after Dricus Du Plessis questioned the authenticity of his past struggles. Ahead of their UFC 305 showdown, Adesanya was gearing up to reclaim the middleweight throne—but before a single punch was thrown, ‘Stillknocks’ hit below the belt, accusing Izzy of faking a hard-knock life. The jab cut deep. Now, a year later, ‘The Last Stylebender’ has finally opened up about why that moment at the pre-fight presser broke him emotionally—and it’s not the reason fans expected.

Dana White pitched Adesanya against Du Plessis last year in a high-octane battle in Perth, Australia. The anticipation for the fight was already sky-high, but what caught everyone off guard was Du Plessis’ mic skills, which brought Adesanya to tears. Well, ‘The Last Stylebender’ did lose the battle to the South-African by way of a submission in the fourth round, but did he hold onto his emotions? Certainly not, as the ‘fake African’ jibe and the resultant animosity ended right after the day with Du Plessis mending his relationship with his opponent.

Now, you might be wondering—why did Adesanya cry if it wasn’t because of Du Plessis? Well, the reality might surprise you. During a conversation on the Pound 4 Pound podcast, Henry Cejudo asked the former two-time middleweight champion about the fight that felt the most personal to him. While many might assume it was his UFC 305 clash with Du Plessis, in reality, it was the one with Sean Strickland at UFC 293. Cejudo was shocked and asked why it’s not Du Plessis, to which ‘Izzy’ stated, “People were like, ‘Oh, you know, he made you cry. It’s like he didn’t make me cry. Okay, I’ll tell you what it is. I was talking about my mom.””

He further added, “So, what we used to do as high schoolers, I used to go with my dad to my mom’s job because she was studying to be a nurse. We’d go to the bank to clean at like 4:00 a.m., maybe 4:30, get back home, get ready for school, and then go to school. So, I was doing that, and I mentioned it. I saw my mom in front, and she kind of welled up. And you know when mom wells up, it just hits you in the fields too. So, it wasn’t him. It was my mom. Seeing her get emotional got me emotional.”

Their beef was real, but not the kind that would lead to lasting animosity. After defeating Adesanya, Du Plessis gifted him a custom-made jacket featuring a South African inlay—originally given to Du Plessis by his friend, Springboks captain Siya Kolisi. Adesanya gracefully accepted the vest as he raised ‘Stillknocks’ hand in the air, referring to him as a “True African Champion.”

That’s not all, Du Plessis even met Adesanya’s parents in the dressing room after UFC 305, where he respected their struggle and reminded them that their son is a warrior.“You guys are excellent parents. You’ve raised a great warrior. Thank you for raising a warrior.” He even emphasized that the pre-fight banter was not meant to disrespect their family. Well, their rivalry has turned into a beautiful friendship, but the same cannot be said for Sean Strickland.

Israel Adesanya demands Sean Strickland for a rematch this year

Israel Adesanya was coming off a revenge victory over Alex Pereira at UFC 287 when he was matched up against Sean Strickland — a bout that marked the beginning of Adesanya’s downfall. Earlier this year, ‘The Last Stylebender’ lost the third fight back-to-back for the first time in his career, shocking everyone. With this defeat, Adesanya understood that he needed a break before he made a comeback to the Octagon. However, is he retiring? Certainly not, but for his next fight, Adesanya wants to redeem himself against his UFC 293 dancing partner.

“I didn’t spar after my last fight. I did so well in the fight, I did so well in the camp, and I didn’t get the result that I wanted, but I was still proud of myself. I’m still proud of the way I worked. So then I didn’t spar because I just looked after my brain. Then, when I was in Miami recently watching [Alexander Volkanovski] get his belt back, then I sparred with Kamaru Usman for the first time in months. And I knew once I sparred it would be like, ‘Man, I’ve gotta fight!’,” said Adesanya on his YouTube handle.

‘Izzy’ further emphasized that he has already asked UFC CBO Hunter Campbell for this fight, and they have agreed to make it happen if possible. Given that, what are your thoughts on Israel Adesanya’s career? State your opinion in the comments below.