Israel Adesanya has been told his time as middleweight champion will be over when he fights Alex Pereira at UFC 281 in November.
Adesanya, 33, is scheduled to make the sixth defence of his 185lb belt against Pereira at Madison Square Garden. The pair have a lengthy history, with Pereira outpointing Adesanya in their first kickboxing meeting six years ago and brutally knocking him out in their 2017 rematch. Pereira, who is 6-1 in MMA, has earned a title shot after three fights in the UFC.
Top middleweight Marvin Vettori, who has lost twice to Adesanya, could be next in line for a middleweight title shot if he gets past former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC Paris this Saturday. Vettori slammed Adesanya's "bull****" antics and predicted his title reign will be ended by Pereira when the pair meet in New York.