Israel Adesanya Reflects on Rivalry With Alex Pereira, Shows Ultimate Respect
Israel Adesanya extended his best wishes to former rival Alex Pereira while commenting on the intense rivalry the two shared over the years.
Adesanya and Pereira have fought each other twice in kickboxing, with ‘Poatan’ winning in both outings. In 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.
However, ‘The Last Stylebender’ was hell-bent on running it back, and in the title rematch, he wasted no time and reclaimed his lost glory with a Round 2 KO of ‘Poatan.’
After the title loss, Pereira moved up to light heavyweight, where he is the current and two-time champion. The 38-year-old now wants to move up and fight for the third UFC belt.
Israel Adesanya, on the other hand, lost his title to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 and failed to capture it against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 in 2024. In 2025, he suffered a TKO loss in a non-title bout against Nassourdine Imavov. The Nigerian-born kiwi now has no desire to recapture the belt and wants to fight freely and try some “risky shi*t.”
Israel Adesanya lauds Alex Pereira
‘The Last Stylebender’ and Alex Pereira’s beef has been squashed, and in the past, they were seen hanging out together. The two have also shown interest in training together. In a recent interview with Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA, while reflecting on the competitive rivalry Israel Adesanya shared with Pereira, the former said:
“I hope he never loses. For me, it was never really about him [Pereira], it was always about me. I knew technically I’m the only one to hurt this man multiple times. I’m so proud of what he’s doing now, two-time light heavyweight champ, he’s back on top now. I hope he never loses. I hope he retires undefeated. It’s not about other people, it was about me, ’cause after he beat me at MSG, people were like, oh, he’ll never fight him again, but it was like, Dana, run that sh*t back.”
Check out Israel Adesanya’s comments below:
