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After entering UFC 281 as champions, Israel Adesanya and Carla Esparza both had their title reigns come to an end Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC) lost his middleweight belt to Alex Pereira (7-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in the main event when he succumbed to a stunning comeback that ended in a fifth-round TKO for his Brazilian foe. The co-headliner saw Esparza (19-7 MMA, 10-5 UFC) drop the women’s strawweight strap when Zhang Weili (23-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) tapped her out with a choke in the second round.
