Alex Pereira continued to be the thorn in Israel Adesanya’s combat sports side on Saturday when he claimed the middleweight title from his rival in the UFC 281 headliner.
Pereira (7-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) completed his quick rise to the top of the weight class when he handed Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC), who he beat twice in kickboxing, a fifth-round TKO loss to claim gold in the main event at Madison Square Garden in Brazil.
With the victory, Pereira resets the title picture and gives Adesanya his first career defeat at 185 pounds.
