Israel Adesanya's quick ascension to global superstardom hasn't changed the man behind the legend.
The charismatic Kiwi fights Australian Robert Whittaker for the undisputed UFC middleweight championship on Sunday at Melbourne's Marvel Stadium.
The 30-year-old Aucklander has taken the combat sports world by storm, winning six straight fights inside the Octagon since his debut in February 2018.
In the last 12 months, Adesanya has dispatched former UFC champion Anderson Silva, American Derek Brunson and, last time out, perennial middleweight contender Kelvin Gastelum in a fight of the year performance.
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That win earned 'The Last Stylebender' an interim middleweight title and a shot at Whittaker's outright crown.
Adesanya's critics have slammed his trash-talking style, comparing him to UFC's biggest star, Conor McGregor, whose self-promotion and outlandish behaviour has made him millions of dollars, but also landed him in trouble with the law.
On camera, Adesanya displays some of those same traits as McGregor, but behind closed doors, the undefeated mixed martial artist lives a normal Kiwi life
"I like to play with my cat at 2am," Adesanya told Newshub, with a laugh. "You guys don't get to see that.
"You know I'm a guy who kinda lives on the cusp, but I can be introverted and extroverted, and I do both very well.
"When I get home, I don't like to talk to people very much and when it gets close to a fight, I detach myself from the people around me.
"Not in a bad way - I just want to be alone with my thoughts."
Adesanya's teammates, coaches and training partners laud his selflessness, claiming the 'shit-talking' self-promotion fans are exposed too is just part of the business.
In reality, Adesanya is the ultimate team player.
"He's a thoughtful teammate," said City Kickboxing head coach Eugene Bareman. "One who is very cognisant of other people's feelings and emotions, and what they are going through.
"He is a very good people-reader. He is able to understand and identify the times when some of the other guys may be having struggles, having hard times in training camp, and he is quite sympathetic to them in that sense."
Fellow trainer and Sky Sport combat sports analyst Mike Angove told Newshub that a cocky, self-centred attitude wouldn't fly at a gym that had built its growing reputation on hard work and family-first culture.
"Israel is an incredibly generous person to his friends and teammates," Angove said. "He is a very caring human.
"You have to remember, we are in the fight-sports business. What you guys see is Israel's game face.
"He's in there to punch the other guys lights out, not to pat him on the bum and be cute.
"Izzy himself is pretty quiet - he keeps to himself, and he likes to dance a lot and take the piss out of my dancing," laughs Angove.
UFC featherweight contender Alexander 'The Great' Volkonovski believes critics of Adesanya confuse arrogance with confidence.
The Australian is currently in New Zealand, preparing for his upcoming title fight against champion Max Holloway in December.
Vokonovski, a regular at Auckland's CKB gym, told Newshub Adesanya had unbelievable self-belief in his own ability, which could rub some people the wrong way.
"He is a very respectful dude," Volkanovski said. "A lot of people throw out this word cockiness - I don't think that's what it is.
"What it is is confidence. You can see that in his performance.
"He really is that confident in his own abilities and that reflects in his actions.
"It's not gloating or anything like that, it's just part of the game.
"As for the showboating in the cage - that's just part of who Izzy is, that is his style and I just think it comes down to confidence."
And should Adesanya claim victory on Sunday and catapult himself into worldwide headlines, don't expect anything to change.
"Everytime I get back home from a big fight and that star has risen a little bit, I reiterate with my friends not to treat me differently.
"It gets weird and I've seen it in other people - it's just really gross.
"People expect you to change and that's just not me."
Join us for live updates of UFC 243 from 11am Sunday October 6.
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