Israel Adesanya speaks on UFC editing Francis Ngannou mention from Countdown series

Israel Adesanya took a moment to speak on his thoughts of what was an edited clip of him speaking that appeared in the UFC Countdown ahead of his CHampionship fight with current South African World Champion Dricus Du Plessis.  Adesanya who was born in Nigeria but lives in New Zealand gave praise to the ‘Three kings” speaking of himself, Francis Ngannou, and Kamaru Usman. During the UFC Countdown episode the ”three kings” reference and mentioning of Ngannou is removed.

The first rule of UFC Fight Club: don’t mention Francis Ngannou’s name…

Here’s a look at the clip from the UFC 305 Countdown episode versus what Adesanya actually said at the UFC 305 Pre-Sale Press Conference.

It’s no surprise, but the UFC’s attempt to erase Ngannou from its… pic.twitter.com/PZpA7UAtSe

— AFeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) August 13, 2024

Similar promotional tactics have been used by the UFC in the past when champions such as Rico Rodrigues, Tito Ortiz, Randy Couture had issues with the company. Adesanya is a rare instance where a current fighter on the UFC roster will speak up for a fighter who has recently departed the company.

Francis Ngannou went on to have a boxing bout against Tyson Fury where he lost a split decision before a return to the ring against Anthony Joshua. Ngannou will be returning to the cage for the first time since his win over Cyril Gane when he defended his UFC Championship to depart the company with a victory.