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Kevin Holland and Marvin Vettori were amongst the first to react to an Instagram post from ESPN MMA featuring comments from middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
Stating that Darren Till was the only intriguing prospect for him at middleweight, Israel Adesanya said:
"To be honest... None of them except Till. And I just keep saying, I hope he keeps winning so we can have that fight because you know the vibes. I just like that style... If he wants to be that Muay Thai master and thinks he can stand up with me, be my guest. Ya I like Till, I like the style and I'll like to fight him but he just gotta win man. He just gotta get his s**t together and keep winning. Till, come on Scouser."
Marvin Vettori, who is likely to face Darren Till next month, sarcastically commented on the post with three laughing emoticons. Kevin Holland was next to join the fray by mocking Israel Adesanya for moving up to the light heavyweight division. Kevin Holland commented on Instagram:
"For the record me and him are fighting at 205 that's why"
Israel Adesanya was dismissive of a potential fight against Kevin Holland as he deems that Kevin Holland is yet to move up the ranks. Israel Adesanya told Ariel Helwani:
"Ah, oh no. He's way down the line, he's way way down the line. But if he keeps winning I'll look forward to that fight as well."
Kevin Holland has had a spat with Israel Adesanya
Kevin Holland is currently on a dream run to become the third UFC fighter to win all five fights in a year. The 'Trailblazer' will look to continue his dominant surge as he headlines the UFC event against Derek Brunson on March 20.
While Kevin Holland might still be far from a matchup against Israel Adesanya, he has always been vocal about his disdain for the king of the middleweights. In an interview with ESPN, Kevin Holland recalled an incident from UFC 227 that supposedly triggered him. In the aftermath of his victory against Charlie Ontiveros, Kevin Holland told Ariel Helwani:
"It was in L.A. when I was fighting Thiago Santos. They were doing media the same day that we were doing the mock weigh-ins. They were getting done with media and they were going up the stairs and we were going down the stairs. I said something like, ‘Yo that’s Izzy right there he ain’t that big’. He was like what the f–k you said?"
