MMA
Is Israel Adesanya on Steroids?
Israel Adesanya has made a feared reputation inside the Octagon. On his debut, he beat Rob Wilkinson via TKO in the second round at UFC 221 in February 2018. He also won the Performance of the Night bonus for that fight. Going forward, he picked up victories over Marvin Vettori, Brad Tavares, and Derek Brunson at UFC on Fox 29, UFC 230, and UFC 234 respectively.
Though ‘The Stylebender’ is enjoying a decorated MMA career so far there have been some questions surrounding his accomplishments. And one of them has been whether Adesanya has used performance-enhancing drugs(PEDs) in his fighting career.
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The controversy emerged when people noticed that Adesanya’s right pectoral muscle looked much different than his left. Needless to say, fans started speculating what could be the reason behind the swollen pectoral muscle on his chest. Additionally, Jon Jones pointing it out did not help Adesanya, who found himself under a lot of questions after the fight.
Israel Adesanya’s saggy left pec.
Israel Adesanya comments on the speculations on using steroids
The muscle appeared inflamed and saggy, leading to speculation of gynecomastia. People noticed the pec at UFC 253 where Adesanya faced Paulo Costa, Adesanya dominated the whole that made people talking and his post-fight celebration also made controversies.
“No, I haven’t (addressing steroids), I’m not one of those people who need a crutch that when it gets taken away you feel weak, you feel inadequate. You see with when (the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency) came through, you saw a lot of bodies change and a lot of people didn’t feel good enough without their magic supplements. But yeah – not me. Skills pay the bills.” Adesanya told UFC broadcast partner ESPN.
Adesanya’s head coach Eugene Bareman finds the accusations against his star pupil absolutely bogus. Denying the fact that the athlete has ever used PEDs.
“I mean, in typical Kiwi fashion we just kind of laughed it off, just because we’re, like, so confident, and we know that nothing could be further from the truth. So, like, when something is so outlandish, it kind of becomes funny. Because it’s just so outlandish it kind of takes on this comedy-type feel. So, I found it kind of funny. But it’s outrageous. I think it’s just outrageous. To be pretty honest, we’ve just laughed it off.”
Now, after having gone through a few medical tests, Adesanya says that the UFC’s doctor told him it could be caused by him smoking marijuana when out of competition. Marijuana use is allowed by USADA and many athletic commissions outside of immediate competition (also known as in-competition).
“My pituitary gland was checked, hormone levels are fine, estrogen and testosterone. Yesterday we had an ultrasound and a mammogram. I had one for the first time, to be honest, it might have just been unhealthy living a little bit. Like smoking weed. That’s what the doctor from the UFC said. He said I need to stop, but I’m not stopping. I’m just going to slow down on the smoking weed.” Adesanya told ESPN.
Adesanya was aware of his medical condition, it had been weeks since Adesanya’s right pectoral started swelling, increasing in size, and was sore, his girlfriend advised him to see a doctor, but he opted to fight Costa before seeking medical attention.
Many of Adesanya’s fans, critics think that the 6’4″ athlete used PEDs, but there is surely no way of proof to find out whether these speculations are true or not. Additionally, the caliver of a fighter Israel Adesanya is, with a famed career in kickboxing and an incredible career in mixed martial arts, it looks unlikely that the Stylebender would go that step.
Needless to say, Adesanya risks losing his legacy, and his comments on Jon Jones suggest that he doesn’t want to go the same way, and eventually tarnish his legacy with speculations.
Israel Adesanya is a fighter’s fighter and has time and again proved his dominance inside the cage. He takes on Marvin Vettori in his next title defense and will look to jump back to the winning column after a lackluster performance against Jan Blachowicz.
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