Israel Adesanya has admitted he may never have another shot at the UFC middleweight title if he loses his rematch with Alex Pereira next month.
The former world champion had never lost at 185lb before facing Pereira last November, and was dominating the first five rounds until he was stopped with seconds on the clock. The pair had fought twice before in kickboxing, with Pereira winning both, including one particularly vicious knockout, but the Nigerian was a heavy favourite under MMA rules.
And they agreed to immediately run the fight back next Saturday in Miami, with Adesanya understanding there's very little chance he gets back to the top of the division with a loss. He will at that stage be riding a two-fight losing streak, and have been stopped three times by the champion across different disciplines, and would need a massive run to get another shot.
