Israel Adesanya has been urged by UFC fans to search for a stoppage in his trilogy fight with Alex Pereira.
Middleweight champion Adesanya will take on former two-time rival Pereira at Madison Square Garden at UFC 281 on November 12. It will be the Nigerian's sixth consecutive title defence but will have much higher stakes with the Brazilian known as the only man to have knocked Adesanya out cold.
'Style Bender' has faced widespread criticism from fans in his recent fights after failing to find a stoppage in a third consecutive fight against Jarod Cannonier last time out. Now fans have had their say on his upcoming battle with Pereira, with one commenting: "This time don’t play with your food.
"When you put him on skates again take him out. Could be next great trilogy. How he jump line, he hasn’t even faced the monsters you have." One fan had already seen enough: "Not buying your pay-per-view again. It’s too expensive for a snooze fest, you only talk big." A fan backed Adesanya with a request: "Make it have a little more action that your last one okay? One of many fans who pay for this stuff."
Another believes they have found a reason: " Anderson Silva had only two decisions during his championship run. He always brought the fight and put the belt up for grabs in that process. "You’re great and have the potential to be one of the greatest ever. You seem like you’re addicted to the fame rather than focused on the game though."
Another fan added: "Bro, just fight this time, ok? That would be enough. That 'kill or be killed' sounds very brave, predatory, you name it, but the result is always you taking long distances, even running. Champ, this is not ballet and you know it." One fan concluded: "The build of this fight is very similar to the build of Israel vs Costa people calling Israel boring saying that said fighter Costa then Pereira now will make Israel fight."
Do you think Israel Adesanya will stop Alex Pereira? Let us know in the comments section below
Despite the increasing level of fan protest, Adesanya has become one of the biggest names on the UFC roster and is now the second highest-paid behind Conor McGregor after sealing a lucrative deal earlier this year. The Nigerian also has uncharted popularity and has several friends within the promotion including the Irishman and Kamaru Usman.
However former two-time champion Henry Cejudo has joined the army of fans and claimed that Adesanya's fights are "lame". “Main events are special," Cejudo said. "If he’s not performing, UFC stop pushing this dude. He’s a decision maker. He hypes a lot and doesn’t deliver.
"It’s been like that with him for a minute now. If you’re going to call people out and do all this other stuff, finish them. Put a beating on people. Be spectacular. People look more forward to his entrance than his actual fight."
