MIAMI – Tension was running high in the final faceoff between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya.
The two middleweights locked eyes in a very intense staredown during Friday’s ceremonial weigh-ins for UFC 287. Pereira (7-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) defends his 185-pound title against Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC) on Saturday in the main event.
The contest is an immediate rematch, after Pereira dethroned Adesanya by fifth-round TKO at UFC 281 in November to claim gold. The Brazilian also has two wins of “The Last Stylebender” in their pre-UFC kickboxing careers.