Israel Adesanya is choosing Alex Pereira to retain the sunshine heavyweight title as soon as once more.
Pereira, the longtime fight rival of Adesanya, headlines Saturday’s UFC 307 occasion as he defends towards Khalil Rountree in Salt Lake Metropolis.
“Simply off the cuff, I’ll go Pereira as a result of [of] momentum proper now,” Adesanya mentioned on The Adam Carolla Present. “Rountree doesn’t grapple. He likes to kickbox, he’s by no means gone for a takedown. … For those who’re going to do this with Pereira — and I’m the one one who has ever rocked him, or stood with him within the UFC, everybody else, he’s washed — Rountree, I really feel like, if he could make it soiled and catch him, he can catch him. However it’s so exhausting to do with Pereira as a result of, Rountree, his attain may not be capable to get to him.”
Pereira received the primary three conferences with Adesanya — together with capturing the middleweight title from “The Final Stylebender” with a fifth-round TKO at UFC 281 in November 2022. Adesanya would regain the title 5 months later at UFC 287 with a devastating knockout, which served as the ultimate time Pereira would compete at 185 kilos. “Poatan” moved as much as mild heavyweight the place he captured the title, and efficiently defended in 2024 with brutal knockouts of Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, and Jiri Prochacka at UFC 303.
Whereas Adesanya believes Rountree is a harmful fighter, he believes that Pereira will simply be an excessive amount of along with his body, protection, and energy.
“I’m going to go Pereira, and I’m going to go TKO or KO,” Adesanya mentioned. “I don’t know what spherical, however I simply really feel prefer it’ll be exhausting for Rountree to get handed that body.
“[I can see] leg kicks, leg kicks [from Pereira], and he would possibly catch Rountree as he is available in. As a result of Rountree goes to be attacking him. … Paper can’t struggle paper, in order that’s why you’ve obtained to struggle. However it’s struggle and I believe, once more, Pereira by Spherical 2 or Spherical 3. But when Rountree does it, f*cking ridiculous.”
