Israel Adesanya continues to bury the hatchet this year when he connected with current UFC light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira, to watch the fights cageside at UFC 312 earlier tonight (Sat., Feb. 8, 2025) LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
Adesanya and Pereira go all the way back to their days with GLORY. “Poatan” defeated Adesanya twice under kickboxing rules before they carried their rivalry into the Octagon. Pereira would stop Adesanya’s epic middleweight title reign with a comeback knockout finish of “Last Stylebender” at UFC 281 back in 2022. Adesanya returned the favor in a rematch at UFC 287 in 2023, which he won via vicious knockout. It remains Pereira’s only loss inside of the Octagon.
On Saturday, the two former rivals joined forces in the crowd to watch the early morning action side-by-side. Adesanya and Pereira pretty much buried the hatchet after their two UFC middleweight title fights, but their “friendship” hit new heights at UFC 312. This comes after Adesanya and former rival Robert Whittaker called an end to their feud last month for a nice sparring session.
Check out Pereira and Adesanya’s cageside bromance below:
Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira linked up at #UFC312
(via alexpoatanpereira/IG) pic.twitter.com/n4X4DT6X1Q
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 9, 2025
Israel Adesanya is sitting next to Alex Pereira at #UFC312
(via @freestylebender) pic.twitter.com/9kEhx6l2m3
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 9, 2025
For complete UFC 312 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.