Former two-division UFC champion Alex Pereira paid a tribute to Israel Adesanya after the induction of the UFC Hall of Fame of his former rival.
Former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya and support pillar Kelvin Gastelum treated Vechtfans with one of the wildest fights in the MMA history at UFC 236. Six years later Adesanya and Gastelum were initiated into the UFC Hall of Fame's 'Fight Wing' for their legendary.
Adesanya defeated Gastelum through a unanimous decision for the then-interimal UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 236. It was a wild Slugfest of start-to-finish, with one of the few times that Adesanya was crashed in his career in the hands of Gastelum.
The victory of Adesanya started a run to UFC Superstardom that is still active today. Although Gastelum falls short of earlier elevated expectations, his confrontation with Adesanya will live in the UFC record books.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Alex Pereira responds to the UFC Hall of Fame induction of Israel Adesanya with stylish message
Adesanya has had several notable rivalry during his combat sport career, including his confrontation with Alex Pereira in MMA and Kickboxing. After two fights in Glory, Adesanya and Pereira would eventually meet twice in the UFC-Oachthoek, because they both made the full-time transitions to MMA.
Adesanya was minutes away from the handing over of Pereira a probably loss of decision at UFC 281 to defend his UFC mid -weight, before Pereira earned a late TKO finish in Madison Square Garden. Adesanya received revenge on UFC 287 only a few months later and defeated Pereira by second round knockout.
While Adesanya and Pereira had one of the most heated rivalry in the UFC history, they have since turned the page on their previous feud and have expressed mutual respect for each other. After the UFC Hall of Fame induction by Adesanya it was not long before Pereira spoke about the prestigious honor of his former rival.
In a recent Instagram post, Pereira congratulated his dual UFC rival with his UFC Hall of Fame induction.
“This is sport!” Pereira posted.
Pereira and Adesanya were CAGEIDE to view UFC 312 earlier this year, with a confrontation between Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland. The two exchanged polite features in an interaction that attracted the attention of Vecht fans around the world.
After their two middleweight attacks, Pereira moved to the light heavyweight division and will try to reclaim the 205 pound throne in its next potential appearance.
Magomed Ankalaev vs. Alex Pereira 2 remains in Flux after recent social media banter
Earlier this year Pereira lost the UFC Light Heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev on UFC 313. The loss ended a record -breaking light heavyweight title line, with four successful light heavyweight title fights in less than a year.
Despite the fact that Pereira and Ankalaev correspond orally about an immediate rematch after UFC 313, combat interviews have been stuck since then and Ankalaev has expressed the desire to continue with the former title holder. Pereira has since assured fans that he is a return to the Octagon, as soon as he enjoys the much needed peace and downtime.
An announcement for an Ankalaev vs. Pereira Rematch could be done in the coming weeks. In the meantime, Pereira plans his revenge in the hope of recapturing the light heavyweight title.