Israel Adesanya squashed his beef with Alex Pereira recently by sitting next to him and enjoying all the action at the UFC 312 last month in Australia. And now, Adesanya has offered an interesting prediction about Pereira ahead of the UFC 313 this weekend.
This marks a complete U-turn in relations between the two. Adesanya, a two-fight rival of Pereira during their Octagon tenure, is 1-1 against the Brazilian, following a storied kickboxing rivalry.
The Kiwi managed to get the last laugh in the cage between the duo. Regaining the middleweight crown with a stunning rallying knockout win, Adesanya would then send Pereira to the light heavyweight limit as a result.
However, Pereira is enjoying stunning spoils at 205lbs after a three-fight knockout run last year, and has been backed to continue his run at UFC 313.
Tasked with a formidable foe in the form of Magomed Ankalaev, Pereira might face his toughest test to date at light heavyweight.
“(Magomed) Ankalaev; speed, he’ll have to catch Alex (Pereira) when he made a mistake, so counters,” Israel Adesanya said on his YouTube channel.
“[If he] catches him on a counter it could be a dangerous night. But I just think this is going to go leg kicks, leg kicks, leg kicks, left hook. Alex Pereira by — I’m going to go KO, it’s just, yeah.
Forced to the championship rounds for the first time in his title run last time out, Pereira is expected to face a fourth round against Ankalaev, in Adesanya’s pre-fight prediction.
Israel Adesanya predicts Alex Pereira will knock out Magomed Ankalaev in the 4th or 5th round
@stylebender #UFC313pic.twitter.com/p7JhqzEIjS
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) March 5, 2025
“Under two and a half rounds or over two and a half rounds? Over two and a half rounds, like four or five,” Adesanya explained.
“He’s going to knock him (Ankalaev) out in the fourth or fifth round.”
Adesanya’s new-found friendship with Pereira comes off the back of the latter’s pursuit of a similar kinship with Kamaru Usman this week to boot.
Alex Pereira warned to expect certain gameplan by Magomed Ankalaev
And ahead of his clash with Ankalaev, much has been made of Pereira’s potential gaping defensive holes. Warned to prepare for a massive wrestling onslaught, the Brazilian will be gunning for another KO win.
In the build-up to their showdown, Ankalaev was vocal about his plan to stand with the Brazilian. However, today, the Russian has hinted he would be foolish to refrain from utilizing his wrestling.
“We’ll come out there in the stand-up. And then we’ll see what happens,” Magomed Ankalaev told assembled media through an interpreter today.
And his claims of “we’ll see what happens”, has led fans to speculate his overall approach.
Alex Pereira believes Magomed Ankalaev is using Ramadan as an excuse, and isn’t really fasting
“I think he’s using this [Ramadan] as an excuse. Today I went to get my lunch boxes, the UFC lunch boxes, and there were two bags with several lunch boxes with his name on them and… pic.twitter.com/2EmuZbFh22
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) March 5, 2025
Boasted as talented enough to beat Pereira without grappling. Ankalaev’s ability is still more than a cause for concern for Adesanya.
“Leg kicks. Let’s just address the f*****g elephant in the room,” Adesanya quipped.
“That’s gonna be a factor in this fight. [Ankalaev] might have to become a wrestler in this fight. He might have to go into his bag for this one. ‘Cause you can’t just [stand].”
Nevertheless, the tension between Pereira and Ankalaev is palpable. The Dagestani fighter recently called out Pereira on X for wanting to bet $200,o00 on his win. This could intensify their rivalry further and make UFC 313 one of the most memorable events of all-time.
