Joe Rogan once praised Israel Adesanya for how he handled his loss against Alex Pereira in the UFC. In November 2022, Adesanya and Pereira headlined UFC 281 to continue a long-standing rivalry ...

Israel Adesanya, former UFC middleweight champion, ... Adesanya, wearing a big fur coat that would put Jon Snow to shame, adopts a surprising stance for an MMA fighter: gratitude.

Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira at a UFC 281 press conference. Zuffa LLC But there’s more to it than that, says one of the world’s preeminent strikers who knows his way around both sports.

Pereira held two wins over Adesanya from kickboxing, one controversial and one a rally knockout. At UFC 281, he added an MMA win to the head-to-head series with a standing, come-from-behind TKO.

Israel Adesanya knocked out Alex Pereira late in the second round Saturday in the main event of UFC 287 in Miami, Florida, to regain the middleweight title, fueled by the strength of his mind.