Israel Adesanya believes Alex Pereira's leg kicks stopped his "movement" which saw him stopped in his UFC title defeat last year.
The Nigerian star lost his UFC middleweight title after being stopped in the final round by bitter rival Pereira last year who capped off his remarkable rise in the division. 'Poatan' got the better of Adesanya twice during their time in the professional kickboxing rankings, and will be hoping to do so again in their immediate rematch at UFC 287 this weekend in Miami.
Adesanya was performing well in the rounds early on in the fight but struggled to hold up against the power of the Brazilian in the championship round who managed to close the show. And 'The Last Stylebender' has put this down to a nerve injury in his leg which Pereira inflicted earlier in the fight.