Why did Israel Adesanya wear a dog collar at UFC 287 press conference? Watch how his response got the crowd barking

Israel Adesanya recently showed up to the UFC 287 pre-fight press conference donning an unconventional fashion accessory. The Nigerian-born Kiwi wore a tightened dog collar around his neck as he addressed the media ahead of his highly-anticipated rematch against Alex Pereira.

While 'The Last Stylebender' is undoubtedly one of the UFC's most fashionable superstars, many were confused about the meaning behind his unique neckpiece. Adesanya soon clarified his fashion choice when a journalist questioned him during the presser:

"I'm a dog. It's a dog collar, and it's about to be unleashed."

As soon as he answered, the crowd in attendance burst out into growls and barked in unison to back him up.

Watch Israel Adesanya explain his dog collar [13:54-13:56] below:

Interestingly, 'The Last Stylebender's dog collar was inspired by the legendary Chinese actor Jet Li's movie Unleashed (2005). Adesanya took to Twitter to confirm the same as he shared a post explaining the reference. He wrote:

"IYKYK. He got that Dawg in him!!"

Israel Adesanya is set to face his long-time rival Alex Pereira in the headliner of UFC 287. This will mark the fourth combat sports meeting between the two, with 'Poatan' winning on all three previous occasions. The pay-per-view event will go down this weekend at the Miami-Dade Arena in Florida.

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UFC 287: Alexander Volkanovski predicts Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira 2

Alexander Volkanovski is backing his friend and teammate Israel Adesanya to defeat Alex Pereira in their rematch.

Adesanya will be going into this bout under a lot of pressure. The last time the two hard-hitting middleweights met in the octagon at UFC 281, it looked like the Nigerian-born Kiwi was comfortably cruising towards another decision win and successful title defense. However, Pereira caught him against the cage in the final round to secure an incredible knockout victory.

Alexander Volkanovski sees 'The Last Stylebender' finishing Alex Pereira early. In a recent interview with Sky Sports New Zealand, 'The Great' outlined his prediction for the upcoming middleweight title fight:

"I think it finishes early... I’m thinking third round, I don’t know why I’m saying third round, but that’s been my pick, my round... Obviously he’s got something to prove. With the right game plan and things like that, I think it’s gonna go well for him, very well for him, and hopefully a nice highlight reel for Izzy. He’s got many of those and one more for the highlight reel.”

Watch the full interview below: