"Can just see Izzy's soul leave his body" - When Israel Adesanya almost knocking out his trainer had relieved fans in splits

A striking genius like Israel Adesanya must take pride in his accuracy and precision. However, there are times when landing a devastating strike can be a bad thing. Back in 2022, Israel Adesanya was getting striking lessons from his coach Carl Von Roon and nearly knocked the man out while practicing a spinning back kick.

A 2022 social media post showed Israel Adesanya standing right behind his coach prior to his first MMA fight against Alex Pereira. The 34-year-old repeated the technique after his coach and his heel came dangerously close to the back of the coach’s head.

Fortunately, there was no contact but the quick realization shook Adesanya to the core. He apologized to the coach right away but the fear of his capability to hurt someone was visible on his face. The video of this incident was posted on Carl Von Roon's Instagram and reposted on ESPN MMA’s YouTube channel.

While it was a scary moment for Adesanya, everything’s funny in hindsight, especially in the absence of a negative outcome. Fans had fun with the champion’s reaction in the comments section. Here are some comments that grabbed our attention:

“You can just see Izzy’s soul leave his body right after the realization,” @michaelregis1015 wrote.

“When you don’t realize you’re a walking weapon,” @robertrazo4330 commented.

“Izzy saw dude’s life flash before HIS eyes,” @siah201 opined.

Fan reactions to Adesanya's missed head kick [via @espnmma YouTube

Sean Strickland thinks nobody likes Israel Adesanya

Most MMA fans appreciated Israel Adesanya for realizing his mistake after nearly injuring his coach and they showed genuine respect for the reigning UFC middleweight champion. However, Adesanya’s next opponent and fifth-ranked UFC middleweight Sean Strickland doesn’t quite agree with the sentiment.

Strickland’s opinion came to light in a completely unrelated incident. While speaking to the MMA media during the UFC 293 media day interactions, Strickland said:

“Nobody likes f* Izzy. He’s a f* cringe lord. Everything that guy does makes you f* wince. Like, did he really do that? Is he really race-baiting Dricus right now? How does this play out for you? The thing about Izzy, when somebody sucks to that degree, it’s pretty f* easy to make fun of them.”

Watch Strickland’s statement from the 4:37 mark of the video below:

Strickland’s comments were in relation to his heated interactions with Israel Adesanya on public platforms. The duo will have the opportunity to settle the beef in the main event of UFC 293 pay-per-view event this weekend. The fight will mark the first defense of Adesanya’s UFC middleweight title after recapturing it from Alex Pereira in April 2023.