Israel Adesanya issues a statement.
Recently, a video surfaced of Adesanya getting into an altercation with civilian in Auckland, New Zealand. In the video, Adesanya flipped off the patron and made a gesture with his groin.
On Thursday, September 5, Adesanya issued a statement to The New Zealand Herald about the incident and said that he will be pressing charges on the person. Adesanya also stated that the patron racially abused him and challenged him to a fight.
“I am extremely disappointed after an incident on Wednesday when a random member of the public stopped his car, racially abused me, and challenged me to a fight. We have been in contact with police and will be pressing charges.
“On Wednesday morning, I was leaving a cafe on K Rd when a passing car slowed, and an occupant began yelling racial abuse and challenging me to fight.
“I smiled, waved it off, and continued to my car. The vehicle stopped, and the abuse continued. I again waved it off. The car then parked, and the passenger got out, approached me aggressively, continued his torrent of abuse, and demanded I fight him. I tried to de-escalate the situation repeatedly. As he got closer, I asked bystanders to call the police.
“He then entered my personal space, and I felt threatened. To protect myself, I became more forceful in my language and defensive. Though he paused, the abuse continued, so I left him with some choice words, cautiously moved to my car, and drove away.
“It’s ridiculous that I can’t buy a pie after training without some idiot screaming despicable things and asking for a fight while his mates film from the sidelines.
“Threatening violence is no joke. It’s very dangerous, and incidents like this must not be glorified online. I hope in the future people say something rather than get their phones out to film.”
Fightful will continue to update fans as more information surfaces regarding the incident.
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