Israel Adesanya quotes Dave Chappelle in reaction to Andrew Tate backing him up after UFC Saudi Arabia loss against Nassourdine Imavov

Israel Adesanya has taken to X/Twitter to express gratitude for the support of the controversial Andrew Tate. This past Saturday marked one of the worst days of 'The Last Stylebender's' combat sports career, as he lost to Nassourdine Imavov via TKO at UFC Saudi Arabia.

The loss to Imavov marked the third consecutive defeat of his latest run, leaving him at 1-4 in his last five fights. It's a professional low point for Adesanya, who was given a non-pay-per-view slot for the first time since 2018. While many mocked him, Tate defended him on his podcast.

In response, the all-time great UFC middleweight quoted legendary comedian Dave Chappelle in a grateful tweet.

"When a hero stumbles, the cowards rejoice. Nothing feels better to a coward than to watch a brave guy fall." - Dave Chappelle. Shout out mi bredda @Cobratate, Love you G."

Adesanya is one of many MMA fighters to have a positive relationship with Tate, although he has never explicitly expressed support for him. Others, though, have, including former UFC bantamweight champions Aljamain Sterling and Sean O'Malley, as well as unbeaten Chechen middleweight Khamzat Chimaev.

Sean Strickland, a former middleweight champion aiming to regain his title at UFC 312 this weekend against Dricus du Plessis, is among the rare few who famously spoke out against Tate. When it comes to Adesanya, it isn't the first time that Tate has extended a hand toward Adesanya.

He previously agreed with Adesanya's opinion about the modern-day school system. Meanwhile, Adesanya once questioned the validity of the allegations lobbied against Tate, for which he has since been charged.

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Andrew Tate twice came to Israel Adesanya's defense over the Nassourdine Imavov loss

After Israel Adesanya's loss to Nassourdine Imavov, a fan opted to poke fun at him for stopping the referee from intervening after he suffered an eye poke. It was similar to Alex Pereira's viral moment just prior to knocking out Jamahal Hill at UFC 300. Unfortunately for Adesanya, it was seconds before he himself was TKO'd.

A fan mocked him for it on X/Twitter, but Andrew Tate quickly responded with his thoughts on the matter.

"I hate when people who don't have the balls to step in the cage type things like "LMFAO." Laughing at the warrior to feel better about being a coward. Izzy is a legend and braver than 99.99% of men alive. Masculine men show respect to those braver than them. Hating is feminine."

Tate, a former kickboxer, blasted the fan and those criticizing Adesanya despite never fighting professionally.