Alex Poatan mocks threat made by Israel Adesanya for a possible UFC belt fight; understand

A. Poatan (left) should be the next challenger for I. Adesanya's (right) belt. Photo: SUPER FIGHTS montage

Possible challenger for the UFC middleweight belt (up to 83,9kg), Alex Poatán decided to respond to the champion's provocations Israel adesanya. Executioner of the Nigerian twice during his kickboxing days, the Brazilian mocked the threats made by his rival, who commonly uses animation references in his speeches. In an interview with 'The MMA Hour', the Glory legend joked about the situation.

“I don't watch cartoons. He (Adesanya) says: 'I'm going to freeze you (with reference to the film Frozen)'. To me, it doesn't make sense, because I don't watch cartoons. What are you going to do to me? Put me in the freezer?” replied Poatan.

A Brazilian standout in the middleweight division of Ultimate, Poatan may have stamped his passport towards a title fight after his gala performance at the UFC 276. On that occasion, the São Paulo native massacred Sean Strickland and officially joined the group's elite.

The rivalry between Alex and Adesanya began in 2016 and was spiced up in the rematch, the following year, when the athletes faced each other in kickboxing. On both occasions, the Tupiniquim emerged victorious, on the last occasion, with a devastating knockout.

The same UFC 276, Israel reached its fifth belt defense, when it passed Jared Cannonier with performance criticized by fans and specialized press. Days after the triumph, the Nigerian confirmed that Poatan should, in fact, be his next opponent in the organization.