Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is excited about his main event fight at UFC 281 against Alex Pereira.
‘The Last Stylebender’ recently revealed why the bout against the Brazilian excites him much more than most of his previous matchups in the division.
The Nigerian has been dominating the 185lbs division ever since arriving in the UFC almost five years ago. Recently though, the former kickboxer has come in for some criticism for his safe performances lately. However, Adesanya is expecting his next bout to be fireworks against his nemesis Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira.
While speaking with Jake Paul about his upcoming title clash, Israel Adesanya was oozing with confidence. He claimed that he knew he was going to ‘waste’ his past opponents, and the fight against Alex Pereira will be no different.
“No matter what you do in life, there’s always the element of fear, and a lot of people fold under that pressure, and this for me, this is why I thrive… The last few fights for me, I knew I was going to sass these guys, I knew I was gonna waste them,” Adesanya said.
“He’s (Alex Pereira) not gonna try and survive, he’s gonna try and come forward and take me out. That’s what excites me, that’s what I thrive in. I need that pressure, especially under the big lights, MSG, the whole world watching.”
As champion, Adesanya has a target on his back. A handful of fighters are all making their case to fight the champion for his throne. Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa, two men he previously beat, are scheduled to battle it out in February next year at UFC 284. The winner will potentially get a shot at Adesanya’s title.
Aside from holding two kickboxing wins over the reigning middleweight champion, Alex Pereira has shown on multiple occasions that he is a fearsome striker.
Not only does he have devastating power, ‘Poatan’ has a great sense of range and sets traps for his opponents. Alongside that, he is capable of taking damage as seen in his clash against fellow countryman Bruno Silva.
While Adesanya is still arguably the greatest striker in the sport, he cannot afford to be complacent on November 12.
