Israel Adesanya is considered as one of the most outspoken fighters in the UFC. His performance is usually up to the mark and he does not shoot blanks with his words.
One thing that makes him exceptional is his regular commentary of big fights, including his. He regularly posts videos on his YouTube channel ‘FREESTYLEBENDER’ churning out live and post-match reactions. Recently, he analyzed his own bout against Alex Pereira and made some interesting claims.
Alex Pereira had the last laugh against his long-time rival back on November 13, 2022. The bout at UFC 281 was their first-ever MMA encounter. However, they share a history. Leading up to the MMA bout, these two squared off in the kickboxing arena twice. On both occasions, the Brazilian reigned supreme.
Israel Adesanya felt “Electric shock” from Alex Pereira’s kick
The Brazilian middleweight is like the arch-nemesis that hunts rivals down, following them even to the grave. Adesanya, for this particular reason, seems to have an aversion toward him. The Nigerian-descent kiwi middleweight wanted to settle the score once and for on after switching to MMA.
However, he failed to edge over Pereira in the octagon as well. After months, he gained the strength to sit through the videos of his loss. Adesanya was very candid about how he felt, in that reaction video.
Adesanya confessed that Pereira sent an “electric shock” down his spine. He claimed that Pereira’s leg kicks were snappy at first but as he picked up his pace, he connected his second leg kick.
Sensing the move, Adesanya tried to step in the kick’s way. That resulted in a terrible reaction in his body. He claimed that he felt like the leg kick smacked into his nerve like one would strum a guitar chord.
‘The last stylebender’ did not like what he felt at that point. The brunt of that leg kick just shook him. He felt like his spine was buzzing from that kick. Absorbing the shock, Adesanya quickly got back to his feet, going about his usual business. Things started to escalate in the second round as he felt the impact there.
As he was defending against the relentless leg kicks, ‘The Last Stylebender’ felt that his left leg was not as agile as he wanted it to be. He found it hard to plant his left leg. And quite often, he felt like his left leg was lagging behind. Adesanya, however, stayed on his feet. He explained in that video how he still managed to take ‘Poitan’ despite the unfavorable circumstances.
The two arch-rivals will face each other for the second time in MMA at UFC 287 on April 9. Do you think Adesanya will turn things around in the Miami-Dade arena? Or will Alex Pereira keep on haunting the New Zealander?
