If you were left a little confused by UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya’s “Frozen like Elsa” trash talk at UFC 276, you’re not the only one. Alex Pereira, the most likely candidate for Adesanya’s next challenger, was baffled by the reference, largely because, as he said on The MMA Hour, he doesn’t watch cartoons.
“I had a bit rough and difficult life. I started working in a tire shop when I was 12, so my childhood was cut off early because I had to work, so I didn’t watch many cartoons, movies and series. Sometimes you’ll ask me something and I won’t know how to answer and I’ll just say I didn’t watch it. Some people will say I’m an arrogant person, but my childhood was different. Most of my childhood was busy with work and trying to help provide to my family.
Pereira Baffled By Bizarre Adesanya “Frozen” Trash Talk: “I Don’t Even Know Who Frozen Is”
Sometimes I see [Adesanya] doing cartoon stuff that, to me, doesn’t make any sense, because I don’t even know who Frozen is. I’m not being arrogant, I’m not being ignorant — I just didn’t even know up until that point who Frozen was. If you’re going to freeze me, I guess it’s related to ice? I don’t know. I wasn’t getting it.”
Israel Adesanya is a big fan of anime and cartoons. His nickname, “The Last Stylebender”, comes from the children’s TV show “Avatar: The Last Airbender”. He’s made numerous references to his favorite shows throughout his UFC tenure, including to Naruto and Dragon Ball Z. Alex Pereira is baffled by it all.
“First, I don’t speak English. And even if I did, the look on my face would be the same, because he said he would make [the Jared Cannonier] fight look easy and he didn’t.
Goes there and it’s something else. I don’t [do that]. People already have expectations. I lay low, stay silent. ‘Alex, are you going to knock him out?’ ‘No, I just wanna do a good fight.’ I go there and knock him out and people be like, ‘Damn, awesome.’ People start to see who Alex Pereira is.
This Frozen stuff, Naruto, Dragon Ball Z — to me, makes no sense whatsoever. People that understand and believe in the cartoon might be influenced, ‘Oh, he’s going to freeze him.’ He’ll freeze me like the cartoon. Is he? But, how? I don’t know how he’s going to freeze me. Is he putting me in the fridge? Is that it?
I don’t know how this cartoon works.” Is Izzy’s trash talk getting more confusing? Let us know what you think in the comments.
