Israel Adesanya prolonged his finest needs to former rival Alex Pereira whereas commenting on the extreme rivalry the 2 shared through the years.
Adesanya and Pereira have fought one another twice in kickboxing, with ‘Poatan’ profitable in each outings. Within the UFC, Pereira and Adesanya locked in in 2022, and the Brazilian secured a round five TKO finish to dethrone Adesanya and win the UFC middleweight championship.
Nevertheless, ‘The Final Stylebender’ was hell-bent on working it again, and within the title rematch, he wasted no time and reclaimed his misplaced glory with a Spherical 2 KO of ‘Poatan.’
After the title loss, Pereira moved as much as gentle heavyweight, the place he’s the present and two-time champion. The 38-year-old now needs to maneuver up and struggle for the third UFC belt.
Israel Adesanya, then again, misplaced his title to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 and did not seize it in opposition to Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 in 2024. In 2025, he suffered a TKO loss in a non-title bout in opposition to Nassourdine Imavov. The Nigerian-born kiwi now has no need to recapture the belt and needs to fight freely and try some “risky shi*t.”
Israel Adesanya lauds Alex Pereira
‘The Final Stylebender’ and Alex Pereira’s beef has been squashed, and prior to now, they have been seen hanging out collectively. The 2 have additionally proven curiosity in coaching collectively. In a latest interview with Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA, whereas reflecting on the aggressive rivalry Israel Adesanya shared with Pereira, the previous stated:
“I hope he by no means loses. For me, it was by no means actually about him [Pereira], it was at all times about me. I knew technically I’m the one one to harm this man a number of occasions. I’m so happy with what he’s doing now, two-time gentle heavyweight champ, he’s again on high now. I hope he by no means loses. I hope he retires undefeated. It’s not about different individuals, it was about me, ’trigger after he beat me at MSG, individuals have been like, oh, he’ll by no means struggle him once more, but it surely was like, Dana, run that sh*t again.”
Try Israel Adesanya’s feedback beneath:
