By Nelson Dafe on December 1, 2021

Nigeria-born New Zealand-based professional mixed martial artist Israel Adesanya has paid tribute to a former ring rival Alapati Afoa who lost his battle with Motor Neuron Disease (MND) on Tuesday.

Writing on Facebook with a video of himself and Afoa in the ring as they squared up against each other, Adesanya said: “Rest easy Alapati Afoa Forever this moment is legendary to me. Only we know what was said and the respect was mutual. Legacies are built on the shoulders of brave warriors who will venture into battle on a dime regardless of the result. Thank you for your time. A fighter in every sense of the word, in and out of the ring.”

Afoa retired from fighting professionally in 2018 with a haunting Facebook post in March of that year that read: “Never ever wanted to stop #fighting but I guess #life priorities stacked up and fighting wasnt going to provide me a financial future, due to time. As the next shift takes over and new breed takes over I am happy I took part in Nz Kickboxing coming into the sport while the pioneers of kickboxing were finishing and then left while the next generation were just starting. If you’re going to take this path, make sure you leave with no regrets and always with a plan B C D .... #DieFighting always.”

•PHOTO: Adesanya (R) squaring up against Afoa in file photo

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 1, 2021

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