Israel Adesanya has turned the night around to get back what was his. The Nigerian-born New Zealander knocked out Alex Pereira in the second round and thus regains his UFC middleweight title. The fight, which had gone uphill due to the hard blows of the Brazilian, knew how to reverse it and with a forehand He sent Pereira to the canvas, who could not respond and lost the belt in his first defense. Adesanya manages to remove ‘the little thorn’ and defeat his black beast.
Four bouts have been needed for Israel Adesanya to prevail against Alex Pereira. After two losses in kickboxingone by unanimous decision and another by KO in the third round, and one in mma where he lost his championship belt, the New Zealander of Nigerian origin hits the table and regains his title. Both fighters began exchanging low kicks, and Adesanya threw a few hands. Pereira landed a hard high kick. They continued with the kicking and the New Zealander began to press forward with his attacks. The Brazilian continued to punish his opponent’s legs.
The second round was crazy, a lot happened in a very short time. Adesanya began by connecting some kicks, but Pereira quickly responded and cornered him. He threw some very hard blows, which hurt the champion, but he did not back down and answered him with hands and kicks. They kept exchanging blows, until the Brazilian cornered him again against the wall of the cage. He connected several hands and a kneebut Adesanya took a right hand that sent Pereira to the canvas. He fell dead, and the referee stopped the fight.
Adesanya couldn’t contain the excitement of getting her belt back. He thanked Pereira for having beaten him in November, since that has made him the fighter he is now. The New Zealander already warned that he was going with everything, and that he wanted to win the clash by KO. And he has done so. It will be necessary to see if they meet again in a third match, since they have become one of the most acclaimed rivalries of the company.
In the co-main event, Gilbert Burns defeated Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision in a fight that he dominated without much trouble. They began by probing, Burns arrived with a straight left and the American responded with a long combination. The Brazilian did not get the demolition against a Masvidal who controlled the distance well. They traded blows and he took the fight to the ground in the face of poor defense from the American. He punished her body, and, after much effort, he manages to escape. Another hard right came from Burns. In the third round, the Brazilian continued with his right hands, which each time left the veteran more touched. He responded, but many blows came to him. He got the takedown and punished him on the canvas in the last few minutes. After the loss, Masvidal announced his retirement and thanked the public for their support throughout his career.
Rob Font defeated Adrián Yañez by TKO in the first round. The American cut Yañez’s winning streak by sending him to the canvas with a right hand. He hit him on the ground until they stopped the lawsuit. Kevin Holland also prevailed by TKO in the third round against Santiago Ponzinibbio in a lawsuit in which he knew how to take advantage of his height and mark the distance. He kicked low and landed a hard hand that sent him to the canvas face-first, and the referee stopped the fight. Raúl Rosas added his first loss after losing a unanimous decision to Christian Rodríguez. The 18-year-old wrestler went all out looking for the takedown, putting pressure on his rival. But in the second round, Rodriguez turned the tables, taking the fight to the ground, grabbing his back and landing punches.
