Published 01/26/2023, 11:45 AM EST
Despite his recent loss, Israel Adesanya is still one of the top fighters in the entire UFC. ‘The Last Stylebender’ held a dominant reign on the middleweight championship title but finally gave in to Alex Pereira. However, Adesanya still attracts a lot of adherents for his rematch against the Brazilian to retrieve his belt. Because the former middleweight champion also panders to the global audience of anime. Adesanya feels that he reinstigated the lost love for anime among western audiences, through his anime poses in the Octagon. Moreover, in a recent interview, ‘The Last Stylebender’ also listed his top 5 anime shows to satisfy the inquisitiveness of fellow anime-loving UFC fans.
The Last Stylebender named his top 5 greatest Anime series of all time
Israel Adesanya felt his rise in the UFC also accounted for the rise in popularity of the Japanese media influence. Because Anime was finally being appreciated by a major audience. Whereas, it was a niche community before. Therefore, Adesanya announced his place among those who put anime across the globe. Even after his disappointing defeat in UFC 281, the star is confident in his ability to bounce back.
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Adesanya explained in a recent segment with GQ sports, “Once I did it, I started to see like NFL players, Olympians, and so on and so forth, do their celebrations, like anime style. And it was cool. I wouldn’t say I paved the way, but I’d say I just expressed myself the way I wanted to. And then people followed suit.”
The UFC star even announced his top 5 favorite Anime:
Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008) Naruto (2002-2007) Death Note (2006-2007) Jujutsu Kaisen (2020-) Spriggan (2022)
Israel Adesanya feels responsible for introducing anime to a new audience
The former middleweight champ claimed the responsibility to popularize anime in recent times. The former UFC champion often flaunts his love for anime during interviews and fan interactions. But, also does his fight walkouts paying tribute to iconic anime characters.
Adesanya said, “When Bruce Buffer was announcing my name, I took the weights off and I went like that, boom. And I hit a flip, I hit the pose.”
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The 33-year-old fighter claimed “It was gangster,” and continued “If you know, you know,” He also didn’t want to praise himself, but stated the facts and said “It’s like I play to my crowd. I wouldn’t toot my own horn, But I’d say I was partially responsible for anime being kind of mainstream and in sports.”
Israel Adesanya lived his life to the fullest. Recently, he shared a childhood memory that motivated him to achieve his potential.
Adesanya has some interesting picks on his list. Have you seen all of these?
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