Israel Adesanya jokes about how UFC fame has caused fans to hold him 'hostage'

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has joked that fans hold him ‘hostage’ upon meeting them in public.

Over the course of the last few years, Israel Adesanya has become one of the most popular stars in all of mixed martial arts. The man known as ‘The Last Stylebender’ has been able to blend together his infectious personality with a fantastic fight style in the Octagon, making for quite the finished product.

It doesn’t feel like the 33-year-old is even close to being done, either, as he continues his reign as the king of the middleweights.

His most recent outing against Jared Cannonier at UFC 276 served as the main event of International Fight Week, which should give fans a pretty good idea of how highly the UFC values him.

Of course, Adesanya also has his fair share of critics, with some believing he’s failed to live up to the pre-fight hype he’s given in his last few outings.

Still, whatever you may think about him, there’s no way of denying just how much of a superstar he is – but as per the champ himself, that isn’t always a good thing.

“I used to smile at randoms in public and they’d smile back. Now they just stop me and keep me hostage with their conversations. But with a smile like this, who wouldn’t want to stop me…”

I used to smile at randoms in public and they’d smile back. Now they just stop me and keep me hostage with their conversations. But with a smile like this, who wouldn’t want to stop me…