Nigerian-born UFC star, Israel Adesanya has lost his BMW endorsement following his comment about raping his fellow fighter, Kevin Holland in an online video.
In a since-deleted Instagram video, he said “Bro, I will f….n rape you,” as part of what was meant to be “fight talk.”
Adesanya was due to be unveiled as the face of BMW New Zealand on Monday, however the German car manufacturer has decided to ditch him over the offensive comment he made earlier this week.
Although Adesanya has since deleted the comment and apologised to Holland, he has continued to receive severe backlash over his statement.
Read Also: UFC Star, Israel Adesanya Apologises For Saying He Will Rape Fellow Fighter, Kevin Holland
In addition to being put on blast by New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister, Grant Robertson, the UFC middleweight champion is now beginning to lose partnerships.
On Friday, BMW issued a statement on Adesanya’s recent comments and confirmed it will be dropping him as its brand ambassador in New Zealand.
BMW said;
Due to the comments made by an athlete online, we have reviewed our pending association with said athlete and we have decided not to push forward with a specific ambassador for the brand at this time in New Zealand.
Although, Adesanya’s stock has risen immensely in the public sphere in recent years, becoming one of UFC’s biggest stars, the current situation could jeopardise his career as this is not the first time the 31-year-old has landed himself in hot water for disrespectful comments.
In February 2020, he was forced to issue an apology after his unpleasant comment about 9-11 incident. He said his then-upcoming opponent Yoel Romero would ‘crumble like the twin towers’ against him.
