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Has Alex Pereira Surpassed Israel Adesanya's Legacy in the UFC? Details Inside
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira reacts to whether he has surpassed the legacy of former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira recently gave an interview to Laerte Vian, where he was asked if he surpassed the legacy of Israel Adesanya after capturing two division championships before Israel Adesanya.
Alex Pereira said, "Honestly, I don't know. You have to see the criteria they use. Adesanya made several title defenses, but I couldn't defend the middleweight belt. But there are things that, if I did, I would be a double champion. He tried to be a double champ but couldn't."
"That doesn't bother me anyway because I think it doesn't matter what ranking they give you. What matters is inspiring people, and I think I'm doing pretty well."
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya's Rivalry Recap
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya are two of the biggest names in the world of mixed martial arts inside the UFC. Alex and Israel have fought four times—twice in kickboxing rules at Glory Kickboxing and twice in mixed martial arts rules at the UFC.
Adesanya joined the UFC in 2018 and climbed the ranks of the UFC middleweight division. In 2019, at the UFC 243 event, he defeated the former UFC middleweight champion, Robert Whittaker.
Israel Adesanya instantly became one of the biggest names in the UFC; on the other hand, Pereira was in Glory Kickboxing, where he became a double-division champion.
In an interview in 2020, Israel Adesanya talked about the man who knocked him out at Glory Kickboxing, Alex Pereira, and mocked him, "He watches all my fights, and every time I fight, like clockwork, he'd try to put something out like, 'I beat this guy.' At the end of the day, no one knows who the fck he is, and he's going to be that guy when I'm world champion, when I'm a legend, he's going to be at some pub talking sht about, 'I beat that guy one time.'"
The interview sparked a fire in Alex Pereira, who transitioned into mixed martial arts and debuted in the UFC in 2021. Alex showcased his elite-level striking, and next year, in 2022, Pereira got a chance to face Adesanya for the UFC Middleweight championship at UFC 281. He defeated Adesanya and shocked the world.
After losing against Adesanya for the first time in four fights at UFC 287, Alex Pereira moved to the light heavyweight division. At UFC 295, he won the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, and at UFC 300, he successfully defended his championship.
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