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Alex Pereira Also Open To Future Friendship With Jamahal Hill After Patching Things Up With Rival Israel Adesanya

When it comes to putting out fires in his combat sports career, a newfound camaraderie with Israel Adesanya isn’t the only unlikely friendship UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira is open to. While achieving unprecedented success in just a few short years under the UFC banner, former kickboxing star “Poatan” has already has his fair […]

While achieving unprecedented success in just a few short years under the UFC banner, former kickboxing star “Poatan” has already has his fair share of rivalries.

Front and center is his feud with Adesanya, which was forged from two battles in the ring and the Brazilian ‘chasing’ his foe to the Octagon, where he dethroned him. A fourth clash between the pair finally went the way of “The Last Stylebender,” leading to talk of yet another installment.

But the pair have since swapped their back and forth for an apparent friendship. After some previous interactions, the pair sat alongside one another while in attendance at UFC 312 earlier this month. Adesanya even recited Pereira’s catchphrase during a video that the latter uploaded to social media.

And with one heated conflict now firmly in the past, “Poatan” is willing to do the same to another that’s currently raging on down the line.

During an interview on Straight Talk with Mark Bouris, Pereira was asked about the possibility of forming a similar bond with former opponent Jamahal Hill.

“Right now, at the moment no, because of a potential fight in the future. We fight in the same weight class,” Pereira said. “But if [it] happens just like Israel Adesanya, I’m not fighting him [Hill] anymore, I have no problem with that. We can be friends, train together; no problem for me.”

Pereira and Hill’s animosity arose ahead of their title bout at UFC 300 last April, with “Sweet Dreams” confidently downplaying the Brazilian’s threat only to be knocked out inside the first round.

As the American pursues a rematch, he attempted to confront Pereira at the UFC Performance Institute a couple of months back, with the champ’s coach ultimately getting between the pair after his man invited Hill to spar.

Israel Adesanya & Kelvin Gastelum’s 2019 Barnburner Announced For UFC Hall Of Fame

Israel Adesanya’s recently gone on a rough patch in his MMA venture, including his knockout loss to Nassourdine Imavov last week. But in a moment of lightness, he will be honored for putting on one of the greatest bouts in Octagon history as part of this year’s UFC Hall of Fame class. Adesanya’s interim middleweight […]

Adesanya’s interim middleweight title fight with Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 236 will be inducted into the Fight Wing of the UFC Hall of Fame this summer during International Fight Week, the promotion announced during the UFC 312 pay-per-view.

The two put on an absolute war at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, GA, on that April 2019 night, with UFC CEO Dana White claiming in the immediate aftermath that it was one of the greatest fights he’s ever seen in his life.

Israel Adesanya vs. Kelvin Gastelum Announced For UFC Hall of Fame Class Of 2025

The fight was a back-and-forth affair, with plenty of moments from both men. Gastelum took many people by surprise when he rocked Adesanya with a head kick late in the fight. Adesanya, however, locked in and did plenty of damage during the final round, nearly prompting referee Marc Goddard to step in.

Adesanya ultimately won the interim title on a unanimous decision before going on to defeat Robert Whittaker later that year at UFC 243 to become undisputed UFC middleweight champion.

The fight joins The Ultimate Fighter Executive Producer Craig Piligian as the inductees announced thus far for the UFC Hall of Fame Class of 2025. More inductees are expected to be announced at the next couple of UFC pay-per-view events.

Best Buds Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya Spotted Sitting Cageside at UFC 312

Bitter rivals turned best friends Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya were spotted smiling and sitting cageside during Saturday’s UFC…

Bitter rivals turned best friends Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya were spotted smiling and sitting cageside during Saturday’s UFC 312 pay-per-view event in Sydney.

After fighting four times across two different promotions, Pereira vs. Adesanya is considered by many to be one of the most fierce rivalries in combat sports history. But that’s all in the past as the former two-time middleweight titleholder and the reigning light heavyweight champion were spotted sitting together while taking in all the action at Qudos Bank Arena in The Land Down Under.

After going 2-0 against ‘The Last Stylebender’ under the GLORY Kickboxing banner, Pereira followed Adesanya to the world of mixed martial arts where they would pick up right where they left off at UFC 281. On that night, ‘Poatan’ shocked the world when he scored a fifth-round TKO, going three-up on the Adesanya and taking his 185-pound crown in the process.

Adesanya ultimately got his revenge five months later, catching the Brazilian boogeyman with an overhand right that rendered Pereira unconscious in the opening round of their UFC 287 rematch.

Alex Pereira and Izzy happy to put their rivalry aside … For now

Though there was still plenty of room for a trilogy fight between the two inside the Octagon, both fighters opted to move on from their rivalry. Adesanya stuck around in the middleweight division where he has since lost three in a row while Pereira has been stacking body at 205, earning KOs against Jamahal Hill, Jiri Prochazka, and Khalil Rountree during his 2024 campaign.

Perhaps we could still see Adesanya and ‘Poatan’ complete their threequel on MMA’s biggest stage someday, but for now, it looks like the former foes are happy to put their past behind them.

Watch Israel Adesanya Recite Alex Pereira’s Catchphrase While Sat Next To ‘Poatan’ At UFC 312

Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira have waged war plenty of times with one another between their time in kickboxing and MMA. But at UFC 312 in Australia, the longtime rivals appeared to be at peace, as the pair were sitting next to each other audience. After images emerged of the two stars seated together, a […]

After images emerged of the two stars seated together, a video showed Pereira flipping the camera to Adesanya, with the fellow former UFC middleweight champion calmly exclaiming, “Chama” — the catchphrase of the current UFC light heavyweight king.

Israel Adesanya, Alex Pereira Seated Next To One Another During UFC 312

Adesanya and Pereira fought twice in kickboxing. Pereira won both fights, once via decision and the other via knockout.

Pereira, who went on to win championships in GLORY Kickboxing, transitioned over to MMA full time and fought Adesanya twice there. Their first meeting came at UFC 281 in November 2022, with Pereira scoring a comeback fifth-round finish to win the UFC middleweight championship.

Adesanya finally scored a win and regained the title when he went on to knock out Pereira at UFC 287 five months later.

Their careers have gone in opposite directions since. Pereira has become the champion at 205 pounds, defeating the likes of Ji?í Procházka, Jamahal Hill, and Khalil Rountree. “The Last Stylebender,” meanwhile, dropped the middleweight title in upset fashion to Sean Strickland, failed to regain the belt against Dricus Du Plessis, and was knocked out by Nassourdine Imavov last week at UFC Saudi Arabia.

Dricus Du Plessis Backs Israel Adesanya’s Firm Take On His Legacy Amid UFC Losing Skid

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis recently assessed former rival Israel Adesanya’s legacy following a third straight defeat inside the Octagon. After consecutive losses to Sean Strickland and Du Plessis in title fights, Adesanya returned to non-championship, non-pay-per-view competition this past weekend in Saudi Arabia. He was unable to rediscover winning form, instead falling via […]

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis recently assessed former rival Israel Adesanya’s legacy following a third straight defeat inside the Octagon.

After consecutive losses to Sean Strickland and Du Plessis in title fights, Adesanya returned to non-championship, non-pay-per-view competition this past weekend in Saudi Arabia.

He was unable to rediscover winning form, instead falling via knockout to the surging Nassourdine Imavov seconds into the sophomore round in Riyadh.

During fight week for the Feb. 1 event, “The Last Stylebender” insisted he has zero worry about his current losing skid affecting his standing as one of the all-time greats, claiming that even 10 defeats in a row would not affect his legacy.

With that sentiment, Adesanya evidently has the support of a former opponent.

“For Izzy, I don’t think there’s another title run,” Du Plessis said during UFC 312 media day on Wednesday. “With all due respect. I think his legacy is cemented and will always be there, and whatever he feels like doing, he can do. I put him in the same category as Anderson Silva at this stage of, lose as many fights as you want. You’ll always have your legacy.

“Anderson Silva, after his reign ended, I don’t care how many times he lost. He was still my GOAT. He was still the greatest middleweight of all time,” Du Plessis continued. “And I feel like Izzy is in that area, where whatever you decided to do – take super fights here or there if you want to, if you still have the passion for it.”

Du Plessis submitted Adesanya at UFC 305 in Perth last August. He’s back Down Under this week to defend the middleweight belt again, this time against the man he snatched the belt from 13 months ago, Sean Strickland.

The Nigerian-New Zealander, meanwhile, is planning on taking some time away from the cage to rest and recuperate, before assessing his next step on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage.

Sean Strickland: Dricus Du Plessis ‘Took The Coward’s Way Out’ By Submitting Israel Adesanya

Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland evidently wasn’t too impressed by how rival Dricus Du Plessis had his hand raised at the expense of Israel Adesanya last year. Strickland and Du Plessis are renewing hostilities this week in Sydney, Australia, where they’ll run it back 13 months on from the South African’s title-winning victory over […]

Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland evidently wasn’t too impressed by how rival Dricus Du Plessis had his hand raised at the expense of Israel Adesanya last year.

Strickland and Du Plessis are renewing hostilities this week in Sydney, Australia, where they’ll run it back 13 months on from the South African’s title-winning victory over “Tarzan” in Canada.

Since then, Du Plessis has successfully defended the gold on one occasion, submitting Adesanya with a face crank in round four of the UFC 305 main event in Perth last August. Strickland, meanwhile, earned his shot at redemption with a five-round performance against Paulo Costa that was widely branded lackluster.

With that in mind, “Stillknocks” has been touting his evolution as a fighter across the past 12 months, claiming to have grown more as an athlete than Strickland since they last collided.

During a recent interview with Fox Sports Australia, the polaziring American responded to those remarks. Suffice to say, he does not agree…

“I don’t know about that,” Strickland said. “Dude, you fought Izzy, and Izzy was beating you in striking. I dog walked Izzy. Don’t get too excited, Izzy. I mean that in a striking sense. Maybe you (Du Plessis) might wrestle a little bit more.

“It was good dude…he took the guy down again. He took the coward’s way out, real bad,” Strickland continued. “He’s supposed to be a strong South African, but wants to wrestle him. Real bad, dude. At the end of the day, he fought well, but you’re gonna let the Chinaman beat you in striking, which we all remember. … I don’t like to wrestle. I’m a grown ass man. I do the right things. I stand and strike.”

Those comments are not surprising given the lead-up to Saturday’s UFC 312 pay-per-view, which has seen the challenger lay down a striking-only challenge to Du Plessis.

Given how quick the South African was to shut that down, Strickland’s takedown defense could be tested come fight night at Qudos Bank Arena.