Israel Mobolaji Temitayo Odunayo Oluwafemi Owolabi Adesanya[1] (born 22 July 1989) is a Nigerian-New Zealand professional mixed martial artist, former kickboxer and boxer.

[14][15] Adesanya attended Chrisland School, Opebi, and enrolled in its Taekwondo after-school club until he was removed by his mother due to an injury.

[22] Adesanya was bullied during his high school years[23] and attributes his decision to pursue martial arts later in life to the mistreatment he experienced.

[24] Adesanya's first exposure to fighting and an early influence on him was watching the British boxer Prince Naseem Hamed.

"[25] Following high school graduation, Adesanya enrolled in a Bachelor of Science in Computer Design at the Universal College of Learning in Whanganui.

[17] Two years later Adesanya made the decision to cease his studies in pursuit of a career in kickboxing and went on to amass an amateur record of 32–1 before turning professional and fighting in China.

[27][28] At the age of 21, Adesanya moved to Auckland, New Zealand, and began training in mixed martial arts under Eugene Bareman at City Kickboxing, with future UFC fighters such as Dan Hooker, Kai Kara-France and former UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski.

[6][7] In his early career he amassed a long winning streak in New Zealand, Australia and had numerous bouts with Wu Lin Feng in China.

[33] The two of them fought a rematch at Glory of Heroes 3, two years after their first fight, with Adesanya winning a unanimous decision.

Adesanya participated in the King in the Ring Cruiserweights II tournament of the regional circuit in New Zealand.

He defeated Nase Foai by TKO in the quarterfinal and Dan Roberts by KO in the semifinal, before facing Jamie Eades in the finals.

[38] His loss came at the hands of future GLORY Middleweight champion Alex Pereira, who won by unanimous decision.

[41][42][43] His last kickboxing fight, before transitioning to mixed martial arts, was a rematch with Alex Pereira at Glory of Heroes 7.

Pereira won the fight by knockout, after dropping Adesanya with a short left hook in the third round.

He scored another TKO win against John Vake, before taking a two-year hiatus from mixed martial arts.

[72][73] In his next title defense, Adesanya faced fellow undefeated fighter Paulo Costa on 27 September 2020 at UFC 253.

[74] This marked the first time two male unbeaten mixed martial artists met in a title fight since 2009.

[78][79] Adesanya also caused additional controversy by simulating anal sex on the prone Costa at the end of the fight.

[82] He lost the fight via unanimous decision, with scores of 49–46, 49–45 and 49–45, marking the first time he has been defeated in mixed martial arts.

[96] Adesanya lost the bout and championship in a major upset via unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the fight 49–46.

[99] In his first non-title bout in over five years, Adesanya faced Nassourdine Imavov in the main event on 1 February 2025 at UFC Fight Night 250.

[102] Adesanya began his professional boxing career in November 2014 against two-time Australian champion Daniel Ammann.

[109] In February 2020, Adesanya came under fire for comments made at the UFC 248 pre-fight press conference, where he said he would make opponent Yoel Romero "crumble like the Twin Towers", referencing the September 11 attacks.

[110] The following day, Adesanya made an apology on his Instagram page, saying "I was simply rambling and my brain worked faster than my mouth in a moment to choose the wrong euphemism.

"[112][113][114] On 16 November 2022, Adesanya was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City for the possession of brass knuckles.

[115][116] On 19 August 2023,[117] Adesanya was pulled over for drunk driving in central Auckland, New Zealand where he was measured with blood alcohol content of 87mg%.

On 10 January 2024, he pleaded guilty[118] and in lieu of a prison sentence, he was fined NZ$1,500 and given a six-month driving suspension.

[122] On 1 August 2024, Adesanya made false comments on Twitter in regard to Algerian boxer Imane Khelif's win at the 2024 Summer Olympics, saying "Men should not be boxing women.

[132] Adesanya is also a professional wrestling fan, once stopping mid interview when he spotted Booker T and acknowledged him.