Now that he’s dealt with this legal hitch, Adesanya can freely travel to Canada for the Strickland vs. Du Plessis fight on January 20th.
Israel Adesanya has dodged a conviction for drunk driving in New Zealand.
The former middleweight champion was pulled over on August 19th, 2023 and failed a blood alcohol test, hitting 87mg per 100mL. That’s over the 50mg legal limit, and just over the 80mg threshold to turn the incident into a jailable offense. Adesanya was facing up to three months imprisonment and a $4500 fine.
According to Izzy’s lawyer Karl Trotter, the sports star faced much larger potential consequences if found guilty. Adesanya signed an affidavit confirming that he may have to repay up to 50% of a six figure sponsorship if the deal was terminated due to bad behavior. A conviction would also make it difficult if not impossible to enter certain countries like Canada, where “Stylebender” is headed in January to watch UFC 297.
“The adverse consequences, should my client be convicted, are monumental,” Trotter said (via Stuff.co.nz).
In the end, Adesanya’s good standing in the community and charity contributions helped him avoid all those negative possibilities. Adesanya had pled guilty to the charges in September, and now a sentence has been issued by a New Zealand judge.
“You’ve bought credit on the country… I accept that in all other respects, you are an exemplary citizen,” he said before handing down a six month driving suspension and $1500 fine.
This leaves Israel Adesanya free and clear to travel to Canada for UFC 297, where Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis will fight for Izzy’s old belt. Will Adesanya step into the cage after that main event to challenge the winner? Who knows, but now a drunk driving conviction won’t stop him from showing up.