"I identify the monster, then I kill it" - Israel Adesanya delivers powerful message on dealing with envy and other 'ugly' emotions

Israel Adesanya is set to defend his middleweight title against Sean Strickland at UFC 293 this weekend.

Ahead of the bout, 'The Last Stylebender' opened up on how he has managed his emotions on his path to greatness. Speaking at the media for the event, the middleweight champion stated:

"I question myself all the time. If I have a feeling of jealousy or envy or I'm angry or I'm sad about something, I'm like, 'well, where is that coming from?' This is the work I've done. If you watch the movie, Stylebender, you will see I've done the work on myself and I'm like, 'where is that coming from? Where is that emotion coming from?'

Adesanya continued:

"When I identify the monster, then I kill it and then I'm able to move on with my life. And then sometimes it might rear its ugly head against and I'm like, 'ah, it's about to come out, squash' because I can sense it's coming. I'm not perfect, bro, I'm f**king - I'm human, I'm a piece of s**t sometimes, but also, I'm the man sometimes. A lot of the times. That's just the dichotomy of being a human animal."

Check out Israel Adesanya's comments on dealing with emotions below (starting at the 1:40 mark):

Adesanya added that people online expect him to react to his shortcomings, such as his UFC 281 loss to Alex Pereira, in the manner that they would handle such situations. Instead of being down by the loss, 'The Last Stylebender' reclaimed his middleweight title by viciously defeating his long-time rival with a memorable knockout in the second round at UFC 287.

Israel Adesanya weighs on greatest of all-time debates

Israel Adesanya's legacy places him among the greatest mixed martial artists of all time. Despite this, 'The Last Stylebender' shared that he is not worried about such debates while speaking at the UFC 293 media day, stating:

"I was chasing the greatest of all-time, and I still think I'm one of the greatest of all-time... but I've never looked at - when have I ever given a f**k about the rankings? If you know your history and you know how I talk, I don't give a f**k, but I know I'm the best. I know I'm the best and I'm not done yet. I'm still going so I know when it's all said and done, I'll be the best and this is art."

Check out Israel Adesanya's comments on the greatest of all-time debates below:

Adesanya brought up common debates regarding the greatest basketball players and rappers of all time to add that art, and the debates regarding which are better, are subjective. 'The Last Stylebender' will look to add to his legacy this weekend as he fights his 11th consecutive title bout in just over four years.