Israel Adesanya is now set to face the man who has defeated him twice in kickboxing, but the UFC middleweight champion is looking forward to their third pairing inside the octagon.
Alex Pereira is just three fights into his UFC career, with a total of seven professional MMA bouts. While his debut finish of Andreas Michailidis and his spectacular knockout of Sean Strickland at UFC 276 were impressive, any other fighter would most likely have more work to do before earning a shot at the title. However, when one holds two wins over the current champion, and the division is essentially cleared out, things can happen quickly.
Adesanya (23-1 MMA, 12-1 UFC) has a decision and a knockout loss against Pereira (6-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) in kickboxing. It’s a big reason why many were excited to see Pereira enter the UFC.
