The much-anticipated war between Israel Adesanya (23-2 MMA) and Alex Pereira (7-1 MMA) was everything promised and more, leaving everyone’s heads spinning following the carnage that unfolded in Madison Square Garden.
The fight saw both combatants exchanging blow for blow during the entirety of the fight, however, it was Adesanya that had the edge on the scorecards heading into the final round after effectively mixing up his striking with some wrestling.
Regardless, following a rallying cry from Alex Pereira’s corner in the final round, it seemingly gave him a second wind as he looked to press the issue.
Pereira backed him up to the fence and unloaded a barrage of punches that landed clean on ‘The Last Stylebender’s’ chin, opening up an opportunity to land his patterned left hook which would secure the dramatic win and championship status.
UFC fighters react to the fight
Madison Square Garden is a place that notoriously knows how to put on a show and has the tendency to draw out the big star names and in this case, many high-profile UFC fighters who made the trip for the UFC PPV.
In a recent video post, we can see how those fighters first reacted to the fight with the majority in complete disarray and confusion that Alex Pereira has finished Adesanya for the second time to become the new middleweight, King.
Leon Edwards had his hands on his head, Brandon Moreno and Kamaru Usman had their jaws dropped, whilst Francis Ngannou was too stunned to even move.
Although, the power of Alex Pereira is well documented there were few people, including UFC fighters that thought he would not be able to get the job done over someone who has been so dominant ever since setting foot inside the Octagon.