UFC 243: Israel Adesanya defends his flashy walkout dance before Robert Whittaker fight

Israel Adesanya reinvented the walkout game on Sunday, with a flamboyant dance number on his way to the Octagon at UFC 243 in Melbourne.

“Stylebender” and three friends performed a rehearsed dance inspired by the Japanese manga series Naruto before taking on Robert Whittaker.

The Nigerian-New Zealander won by a stunning second-round KO at Marvel Stadium to become the undisputed middleweight champion, but suspected some of the chatter would be focused on his entrance.

“No one is doing anything like I’m doing, this is a 60,000-seater arena,” Adesanya said. “People after seeing that entrance … I bet the green-eyed monsters were like, ‘I f****** hope this guy loses’. I’m sure some of you in here as well were saying, ‘This a******, I hope he gets flatlined.

“It’s ingrained in us, this tall poppy syndrome. It’s this jealousy that when someone is shining, we feel it takes away from our own shine. Look, I can’t dim my shine just because some people feel uncomfortable.

“Everything went full circle tonight – I danced with some of my day ones, my day negative fives, some people I’ve known from way back,” he added at the post-event press conference. “To have them set the tone for me, and just have fun … When I’m having fun, I’m the best in the world.”

Adesanya’s entrance was in stark contrast to Whittaker’s, who made an impassioned march straight down to the Octagon.

“When I saw him walk out, he was too intense,” Adesanya said. “You can put your hoodie over your eyes and [beat your chest] all you want. It’s pheromones, I could smell it off him. He’s not with it. He was doing the right moves but there was no feeling behind them.

“So I saw everything coming. I got hit a few times. I don’t like getting hit, not because I’m a b**** or I’m not tough, I am. But it’s not smart.”