Alex Pereira echoes offer of Israel Adesanya trilogy after UFC 295 title win: ‘That’s a fight everyone wants to see’
Offering some motivation and a championship fight trilogy with long-time rival, Israel Adesanya in the immediate aftermath of his spectacular light heavyweight title fight win at UFC 295 last night, Alex Pereira has claimed that despite mocking comments from the former following his victory, he maintains a trilogy bout is a fight fans would clamour for.
Pereira, a former undisputed middleweight champion under the banner of the promotion, turned in a second title fight win last night at Madison Square Garden – stopping former light heavyweight champion, Jiri Prochazka with a second round barrage to win the vacant championship in New York City.
Slamming a slew of damaging leg kicks into the lead front of Czech Republic native, Prochazka in the opening round of their main event clash, before leading the former titleholder onto a counter right hook and straight left hand, dropping him.
Defending a double-leg takedown attempt, Sao Paulo native, Pereira followed up with strikes and elbows to the side of Prochazka’s head, as he slumped back to the canvas, with Pereira assuming mount and landing the light heavyweight crown.
And in the immediate aftermath of his stunning title-clinching performance against Prochazka, Pereira welcomed a trilogy rubber match with arch-rival, Adesanya in the UFC next year, urging the former two-time middleweight champion to avoid a planned hiatus until 2027.
“I’m not the type of guy to call people out but there’s a guy that back in the day did some interviews and I said I was a guy who as just going to stay in the bar,” Alex Pereira told Joe Rogan after UFC 295. “That motivated me. He rescued me from a bar to be here today. This guy said he just wants to come back and fight in 2027. I think he’s a very talented guy. It’s a waste of talent so I want to rescue him too, to come here and fight.”
“I know that I’m not going to do what he did to me to and make me fight three times to fight at middleweight,” Alex Pereira explained. “I know it’s a guy we have a lot of history. I want to make this fight happen. (Israel) Adesanya, come to daddy.”
Responding to Pereira’s call out, Adesanya posted a meme of the Brazilian following his knockout loss to him back in April of this year – accompanied by the caption “Let it gooooo.”
Alex Pereira remains willing to fight Israel Adesanya next year
However, himself reacting to Adesanya’s apparent dismissal of a trilogy clash at light heavyweight, Pereira claimed that fight fans would still clamour for a third bout between the two of them.
“Regardless of what he (Israel Adesanya) says, I was respectful,” Alex Pereira explained. “Give him a chance, he doesn’t seem motivated. I think that’s a fight everyone would like to see, so try to boost him to come back.”
Would you like to see Alex Pereira fight Israel Adesanya again in the UFC next year?
