UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has been warned that his former kickboxing rival Alex Pereira has a different kind of power ahead of their potential fight.
Adesanya is expected to fight Pereira next after he made the fourth defence of his title at UFC 276 earlier this month, outpointing Jared Cannonier in an underwhelming fight. Pereira was the star of the show that night as he knocked out Sean Strickland to set up a fight with Adesanya, of whom he has beaten twice before in kickboxing.
Pereira is nicknamed 'Poatan' which translates to "stone hand" in his native language, with the Brazilian being known for his signature left hook that has knocked out many of his opponents. One of Pereira's former kickboxing opponents, UFC light-heavyweight Dustin Jacoby, said the Brazilian's power is unlike anything he has encountered during his fight career
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“I fought Pereira and it’s the only time I’ve ever been knocked out,” Jacoby said on The MMA Hour. “The guy knocks everybody out with the left hook. I can say that loud and proud, because there’s several guys that have fallen victim to him. He’s just a dangerous man." Jacoby admitted a trilogy fight in MMA between Adesanya and Pereira will be close but he would "never bet against" his former opponent.
"It’s an interesting matchup," he added. "I know Pereira holds the 2-0 record but again, that’s kickboxing and one of those fights was a really good fight that could’ve gone either way. [Adesanya] is just different inside the MMA octagon. He’s got good defence. He fights really smart. He’s got high IQ. I’m a big fan of both guys. I would never bet against Pereira, man. That guy can literally touch anybody and knock them out at the drop of a dime, so Izzy’s got to be careful.”
Pereira will likely receive a shot at Adesanya's middleweight title despite being just three fights deep into his UFC career. The former kickboxing world champion won a controversial decision against Adesanya in 2016 and brutally knocked him out in their rematch the following year. It remains the only time Adesanya has ever been knocked out in combat sports.
Adesanya touched on a third meeting with Pereira before his recent win against Cannonier, telling his former rival at the pre-fight press conference: "Trust me, he knows that I put him on skates last time and this time when I put him on stakes, I'm going to leave him frozen like Elsa."
