Israel Adesanya has always been confident in his skills, but his rivalry with Alex Pereira has proven to be a pivotal force in pushing him to new heights. Adesanya acknowledges as much. Reflecting on their intense battles, Izzy expressed his gratitude for the challenge Pereira provided, thanking God for making it happen.
In a candid interview with Ariel Helwani, Adesanya opened up about their rivalry by saying –
“God blessed me with a great opponent like Alex Pereira. He blessed me with a great challenge like that. And it’s easy to say that now on this side, but fuck, it takes a lot to take on that man.
I always knew that we would have history, and I always knew I could best him. I’m… pic.twitter.com/tXSA7JCjoZ
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 28, 2025
The two first met in Glory Kickboxing, where Pereira got the better of Adesanya twice, including a brutal knockout. Upon joining the UFC, Pereira repeated the feat and knocked out Adesanya again at UFC 281. Their MMA rivalry culminated in a dramatic trilogy at UFC 287, where Adesanya finally bested Pereira, reclaiming the middleweight title in a thrilling fight.
Greatest moment in UFC history
Adesanya had the KO of the year then proceeded to do the best celebration ever
Whilst Pereira was struggling on the canvas pic.twitter.com/xQpJFpWicT
— Kenny Okoye (@TruthfulUfcFan) May 10, 2024
Despite the ups and downs, Adesanya always believed their matchup would be significant, and he knew deep down he could overcome his long-time rival.
“I always knew that we would have history, and I always knew I could best him. I’m glad God blessed me with that challenge to be able to rise to the occasion.”
Looking back, the Kiwi views the rivalry with gratitude, acknowledging that it wasn’t just about the title or the rivalry itself, it was about rising to the challenge and proving to himself that he could evolve and overcome obstacles, no matter how formidable.
And it’s not just ‘Izzy’ who feels this way.
Poatan reciprocates Izzy’s sentiments
Pereira’s introduction to the UFC was preceded by the video of him knocking out Adesanya going viral. Izzy had then commented on the video and claimed that the Brazilian was just some guy, sitting in a bar bragging about the one time he beat the UFC middleweight champion.
Adesanya said these 6 words about Alex Pereira and sparked one of the greatest MMA careers of all time pic.twitter.com/hQr4iGDzqo
— ACD MMA (@acdmma_) June 30, 2024
This lit a fire under Pereira and he found a second lease on life and used it to become the champion he is today. In an interview, ‘Poatan‘ acknowledged as much and expressed his gratitude for Adesanya.
“Maybe without [Israel Adesanya] I wouldn’t be where I am today. I wouldn’t have got into the UFC with the good contract that I did due to the history we have.”
Alex Pereira reflects on his relationship with Israel Adesanya. pic.twitter.com/2kdk7H2Cmr
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 27, 2025
Both fighters have now become immortal in the annals of the sport and that rivalry that had started during their kickboxing days and came to a full circle in the UFC had a huge role to play. While there’s still a lot of gas in both their tanks, it’s just good to see them acknowledge each other at this point in their careers.
