Tristar MMA head coach, Firas Zahabi has shared his thoughts on last weekend’s much-discussed UFC 281 headlining stoppage, claiming newly minted undisputed middleweight champion, Alex Pereira could have ended the career of Israel Adesanya had referee, Marc Goddard elected against intervening.
Taking main event honors at the Madison Square Garden event, Adesanya suffered a fifth round standing TKO loss to Brazilian challenger and past kickboxing rival, Pereira.
Falling to an onslaught of strikes at the Octagon fence from Sao Paulo finisher, Pereira in the final round of their main event bout, Adesanya was wobbled with an uppercut and then felled with the latter’s patented left hook.
Returning to his feet in a bid to evade Pereira’s slew of follow-up strikes, Adesanya failed to evade the majority of the blows coming in his direction, with referee, Goddard calling a halt to the action, resulting in an immediate protest from Adesanya.
In the hours following the main event clash, Israel Adesanya claimed that he was not unhappy with the stoppage issued from Goddard. And according to Zahabi, the Nigerian-Kiwi should likely count himself lucky Pereira didn’t end his career in mixed martial arts entirely.
“(Alex) Pereira could have very possibly ended (Israel) Adesanya’s career if the referee did not intervene,” Firas Zahabi said on his YouTube channel. “Guys, if the referee did not intervene, a scissor knee was coming. Guys, the greatest scissor knee I have seen in all of combat sports ever, is Alex Pereira. …”
“It’s an incredible knee from a giant, who’s incredibly explosive,” Firas Zahabi explained. “He throws it incredibly quick. I thought when Adesanya was dazed like that, the knee was coming. If Marc Goddard did not step in, it could have been a serious concussion, broken ajw, broken orbital, fractured skull even. It could have been something that ruined or ended Adesanya’s professional career. So I’m very grateful that Marc Goddard stopped it.”
Israel Adesanya chases immediate rematch with Alex Pereira
Off the back of his undisputed middleweight title loss, Israel Adesanya maintained he will score an immediate rematch with Pereira in his Octagon return, regardless if a championship is on the line or not.
Just a few days into his UFC middleweight title reign, Alex Pereira has already earned himself another belt. As reported by MMA journalist Ariel Helwani on Twitter, Pereira received his Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt from coach Plinio Cruz just three days removed from his shocking fifth-round finish of former middleweight king Israel Adesanya at UFC […]
it took me so long to get my damn purple belt, and this man just gets handed a brown belt after getting outclassed on the ground by Izzy
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Former UFC champion Daniel Cormier believes there should be no question on whether Israel Adesanya should get an immediate rematch. At UFC 281, Adesanya was brutally TKO’d by Alex Pereira in the final round of their bout, ending his three-year reign as champion. This would mark Adesanya’s third loss to Pereira across MMA and kickboxing, […]
Whilst former undisputed UFC middleweight champion, Robert Whittaker believes he matches up well with newly minted division champion, Alex Pereira following his ascension to the throne at UFC 281 last weekend, the sheer stature and physique of the Brazilian left the ex-champion in awe. Whittaker, the #2 ranked middleweight contender, held the undisputed middleweight title […]