Former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya is arguably one of the most popular fighters in the sport today. “The Last Stylebender” has delivered several exciting fights and moments to MMA fans over the years.
During his run in the UFC, the New Zealander managed to capture the middleweight championship and successfully defended it multiple times.
Israel Adesanya Offers Handshake to Alexander Volkanovski, Gets Snubbed
Adesanya was recently seen training with teammate and the current UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski. A clip of the training session went viral on social media where “The Last Stylebender” offered to shake Volkanovski’s hand, but the latter did not see it.
This led to Adesanya standing in an awkward position, but the 35-year-old turned it around by performing WWE superstar Booker T’s iconic “spinaroonie” move.
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The clip resulted in several MMA fans mentioning Booker T and sharing GIFs of him doing the “spinaroonie” on social media.
One person commented, “Booker T save is top tier elite. [Adesanya] may be ready for the belt again.”
Another person stated, “This is why [Adesanya] is my GOAT.”
Interestingly, Adesanya and Booker T have crossed paths before. “The Last Stylebender” fought Robert Whittaker in a rematch at UFC 271 and defeated him via unanimous decision. Adesanya then made an appearance at the post-fight press conference, where he found the WWE superstar to be sitting amongst other media members.
“Is that Booker T? What the f**?!… Sorry just being a fan… My man, respect to you, bro.”
Later at the press conference, Booker T asked Adesanya whether New Zealand had changed the perception that wrestling is arguably the most important aspect of MMA in favor of kickboxing.
“The thing for me was, I had to humble myself years ago and just be like, ‘Look, I never want some nerd in the blue belt in pajamas to be able to beat my a** as a world champion kickboxer,'” said Adesanya.
“So, I humbled myself and I learned grappling and I learned wrestling and I know how to wrestle. I just haven’t had the opportunity to use it yet.”
Adesanya is currently going through a rough patch in the UFC. He has failed to secure a win in his last three outings and is currently 1-4 in his last five UFC fights.
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Adesanya’s last win came over two years ago, when he knocked out former rival Alex Pereira at UFC 287 in April 2023 to reclaim his position as middleweight champion.