Israel Adesanya reflects on 2022 arrest in New York City airport after losing title at UFC 281

UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya recalls being detained in a New York City airport.

Israel Adesanya put the 185-pound gold on the line against Alex Pereira at UFC 281. The title fight was held inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. Israel Adesanya suffered a fifth-round TKO loss, losing the middleweight title in the process. “The Last Stylebender” got the championship back from Pereira by scoring a brutal second-round knockout win over in their MMA rematch at UFC 287.

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Israel Adesanya on post-UFC 281 arrest

Days after his UFC 281 loss against Pereira, Israel Adesanya was arrested at JFK Airport due to having brass knuckles with him. The weapon was a gift from a fan. Israel Adesanya didn’t know it would pose a problem at the airport. Ultimately, charges were dismissed.

Chatting with Ariel Helwani in-studio for MMAFighting‘s “The MMA Hour,” Israel Adesanya looked back on the situation.

“It’s crazy how life happens,” Adesanya said. “You lose the belt, you go to the airport get arrested. … First thing I did when I got into the cell was meditate for about 15 minutes. [I was in the cell] for about 45 minutes. They were all, like, “What the f***? What are you doing here?’ People started coming like, ‘Oh s***, hey Israel. What happened? We’ll get you out of here as soon as possible.’ That’s life. I like these experiences, whether good or bad, it all happens for my benefit and my favor.”

Adesanya went on to say that he knew he what to do to calm himself during the brief stressful time.

“I sit in the cell and I see people’s graffiti on the wall and I remember just thinking, ‘This is crazy,’” Adesanya said. “I was just fighting at Madison Square Garden literally a few days ago and now I’m in a cell in the airport. So I was like, ‘Right.’ I sat there and I just meditated, just to center myself again. From there it was, ‘Right. Cool. What are we going to do?’”