'I pass the baton to you' - Israel Adesanya recalls what Anderson Silva said after their UFC 235 classic

Israel Adesanya went live on his Instagram handle to recollect his UFC 234 classic against Anderson Silva. 'The Last Stylebender' went on to affectionately reminisce about the fight on its second anniversary.

Israel Adesanya earned a unanimous decision victory against his childhood icon in the main event at UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia. The duo embraced and put on a show of absolute respect after the fight. Speaking of his reverse back fist to end the fight, Israel Adensanya said:

"I pulled it back cause I just knew. I was like- hey, I love you.....(acts out crying) All the feelings, all the emotions."

The two elite strikers had a similar style and put on a magnificent striking display. The fight was widely regarded as the passing of the torch from one generation to another. Going back to a significant moment in his life, Israel Adesanya recollected:

This was my fifth fight in 365 days in the UFC and he told me some really wise words at this point. He said to me- I pass the baton to you. I'm telling you this is iconic in history. I think I need the picture framed as well

Israel Adesanya had a fan boy moment in the octagon

Israel Adesanya has always admitted to being a big fan of Anderson Silva. He had earlier confessed that not only did he watch the replay of the classic multiple times but will probably watch it more than any fight he ever has in the UFC.

In his recent Instagram video, Israel Adesanya also mentioned that he had felt a 'disturbance in the force' ahead of Anderson Silva's title defense against Chael Sonnen at UFC 148. Silva getting rocked in the first round only cemented his belief. While talking about the significance of the fight and the overwhelming feeling surrounding it, Israel Adesanya said:

"I had this crazy baby moment. The boy that has watched this guy fight so many times in, in his presence feels really vulnerable...(I) expressed my gratitude for everything he's done for me. Cause I took a lot of inspiration from watching him fight. This was a special fight for me. I got a title after this fight. But this was like my title fight. This felt through....This for me felt like I did it."