Alex Pereira is getting some help from a UFC legend before his first title defense next month.
Five months removed from his shocking fifth-round knockout of Israel Adesanya at UFC 281, Pereira will return to the Octagon to defend his middleweight championship for the first time against the man he took it from. Pereira is already in the process of cutting weight for the April 8 matchup and now appears to be getting some last-minute help from UFC Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell.
In a video clip uploaded by ESPN MMA on Twitter, ‘The Iceman’ can be seen giving tips to Pereira and his training partner.
Pereira getting tips from a legend
#UFC287 pic.twitter.com/aAeCbQ7rKc
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 27, 2023
If you’re looking to get tips on how to improve your standup skills, there are few better than Chuck Liddell. ‘The Iceman’ became one of the promotion’s hottest acts during the 2000s, capturing the light heavyweight championship and successfully defending it four times in less than two years’ time. Throughout his storied career, Liddell scored victories over other MMA icons including Vitor Belfort, Renato Sobral, Alistair Overeem, Tito Ortiz, Randy Couture, and Wanderlei Silva.
UFC 287 Will Likely Be Israel Adesanya’s Last Chance to Earn a Win Against Alex Pereira
Alex Pereira will attempt to take the tools he learns from Chuck Liddell and parlay them into his fourth career victory over Israel Adesanya. The two had previously met under the GLORY Kickboxing banner with ‘Poatan’ earning two victories, including a brutal third-round knockout of ‘The Last Stylebender’ at GLORY Heroes 15.
After transitioning to full-time MMA in 2017, Adesanya thought he had seen the last of Alex Pereira. Fast forward five years later to UFC 281 when ‘Stylebender’ once again found himself face-to-face with the heavy-hitting Brazilian. And like their previous two meetings, things did not go Adesanya’s way.
UFC 287 on April 8 will likely be Israel Adesanya’s final chance to earn that ever-elusive win over Alex Pereira, recapturing the middleweight crown in the process.