Interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya swaps jerseys with NBA star Paul Pierce ahead of UFC 243
UFC interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya caught up with NBA legend Paul Pierce for a photo opportunity. The pair met outside Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia today, October 1. The venue will host a highly anticipated UFC 243 middleweight championship unification bout between the reigning champion Robert Whittaker and Adesanya this Sunday, October 6.
Adesanya presented Pierce with a t-shirt featuring his “Style Bender” namesake, signing it for Piece for good measure. Former Boston Celtic, Pierce, gifted Adesanya with a signed Celtics jersey bearing his number 34.
.@UFC interim middleweight champ @stylebender and @NBA All-Star @paulpierce34 swap jerseys at @marvelstadiumau in Melbourne, Australia ahead of #UFC243 ?? @UFC_AUSNZ @throwdownphoto ? pic.twitter.com/n6erzhGUMM
— FIGHTMAG (@fightmag) October 1, 2019
The two athletes chatted about Adesanya’s roots in combat sports, Adesanya explaining that he started out in Muay Thai. As for action, Pierce spun a basketball on his finger, saying whilst laughing “I don’t even know how to do this”. Adesanya matched this with some shadow boxing.
A number of UFC 243 open to the public events have been scheduled for this week. The Open Workouts will be held at Federation Square on Thursday evening. A Fan Experience and the official weigh-in ceremony follows.
The schedule and further details can be found here.
