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Israel Adesanya's name is uttered a lot in the world of mixed martial arts. However, it turned out that many people were pronouncing the UFC middleweight champion's name wrong.
Israel Adesanya clarified what the pronunciation should be in a 2019 interview with ESPN's Ariel Helwani.
Watch 'The Last Stylebender' correctly pronounce his name below:
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In another interview a few months after this, TSN's Aaron Bronsteter surprised 'The Last Stylebender' by introducing him in an interview with his full name, which is Israel Mobolaji Temitayo Odunayo Oluwafemi Owolabi Adesanya. Bronsteter missed 'Owolabi' and Israel Adesanya was quick to correct and commended him for pronouncing his name 'better than most.'
Israel Adesanya then said his full name with the correct pronunciation on camera.
Also Read: What is UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya's full name and what does it mean?
Israel Adesanya's name has roots in the Yoruba language of Nigeria, where 'The Last Stylebender' was born. The name he uses inside the octagon, however, stems from his love for anime. It is no secret that Adesanya is a huge fan of the Japanese animation industry and constantly refers to it in his interviews and post-fight celebrations.
His cage-name, 'The Last Stylebender', is inspired by the anime series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The show follows a 12-year-old boy called Aang, the current and last 'Avatar', who can bend the four earthly elements, air, water, fire, and earth.
Israel Adesanya prays for quick recovery of teammate
Ahead of UFC 263, where Israel Adesanya is set to defend his 185-pound belt against Marvin Vettori, an unexpected tragedy has plagued the champ's training camp.
Israel Adesanya's City Kickboxing teammate and promising MMA fighter Fau Vake was assaulted on Symonds Street in central Auckland in the early hours of Sunday. Israel Adesanya took to social media a day after the incident to provide a status update on his teammate. 'The Last Stylebender' let his fans know that Fau Vake was alive and urged everyone to pray for his friend.
Fau Vake is the brother of John Vake, a lead wrestling coach at the gym and a rising mixed martial artist.
In a recent interview with Combat TV, City Kickboxing trainer and Izzy's coach, Eugene Bareman, shed light on how the incident has affected the champ's training camp ahead of his title defense.
"...This isn’t ideal circumstances to train under, but we’ve just got to push forward," Bareman said.
Auckland police have charged three 29-year-olds and one 32-year-old with three counts of "common assault" and "assault with intent to injure." The group appeared in Auckland District Court on Monday.
