Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya serendipitously meet in a cordial encounter at the airport
Israel Adesanya reclaimed his UFC middleweight championship with a second-round knockout victory over Alex Pereira, solidifying the storied rivalry between the two fighters. Adesanya expressed gratitude towards Pereira for pushing him to excel in their Twitter exchange. The champion even shared a video of their post-fight embrace after their highly anticipated rematch at UFC 287.
The series of four fights between Adesanya and Pereira marked a crucial turning point in Adesanya’s career. The Nigerian-born fighter initially faced setbacks, experiencing two losses in kickboxing and one in mixed martial arts. However, he made a triumphant comeback, culminating in his decisive second-round knockout win against Alex Pereira at UFC 287. Adesanya credits Pereira’s presence as a catalyst for his growth and success in the sport.
While the two still share a competitive relationship with Pereira building up his case for the trilogy bout in MMA, the mutual admiration the fighters have for each other is evident from their many interactions. One such interaction was on display when Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya crossed paths in an airport. Pereira posted the friendly interaction on Twitter.
Alexander Volkanovski outlines the narrative on how the UFC is working on the trilogy bout between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira
Israel Adesanya’s remarkable performance against Alex Pereira at UFC 287 on April 8 continues to leave UFC fans in awe. Despite a momentary setback in the second round where Pereira appeared to have Adesanya hurt, the middleweight champion made an astonishing comeback, securing victory through a knockout. The win was so impressive that even UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier believes it to be the knockout of the year thus far.
Adesanya’s triumph over Pereira, combined with his controversial taunting of Pereira’s child after the fight, left spectators eager to witness a rematch between the two fighters. However, Pereira surprised everyone by announcing his decision to move up to the light heavyweight division. He is now set to challenge Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291, with the possibility of the winner earning a shot at the light heavyweight title.
Meanwhile, the UFC has made significant moves in the middleweight division. Robert Whittaker is scheduled to face Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290 on July 8, and the victor of that bout will be granted the opportunity to contend for the middleweight title. However, it appears that Adesanya may also be competing at UFC 293 on September 10. It remains uncertain whether Whittaker or Du Plessis would be available for a quick turnaround to face Adesanya in that event.
While fans will have to wait for a potential trilogy fight between Adesanya and Pereira, UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski believes that the UFC has a strategic plan in place to arrange the bout in the future. During an interview with the MMA Fan Podcast with Stu and Blake, Volkanovski expressed his belief that a third encounter between his friend Adesanya and Pereira could occur, potentially in the light heavyweight division if Pereira becomes the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion:
“…I think it will happen. I think it’s just not something that’s going to happen right away. Obviously, three fights back to back isn’t always good. Like we’ve seen it before, but you don’t really want them like that, so for them to agree, if he(Pereira) wants to go up, say, win the light heavyweight title, and then they fight for like champ-champ. Like, obviously the fight could be massive. Whether that’s what the UFC is planning on doing, I don’t know. I do think that would be pretty clever.”
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