By Erik Rico, Chance Jasso, and Cody Abney
Alex “Poatan” Pereira beat Israel, “The Last Stylebender,” Adesanya three times, twice in kickboxing, and once in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). On April 8th, Adesanya returned the favor and became the undisputed UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) Middleweight Champ and regained the belt for the second time in his Hall of Fame Career.
Adesanya knocked out Pereira at 4 minutes, 21 seconds in the second round of the UFC 287 main event. Adesanya landed 2 huge right haymakers and a “Hammer-fist landed by the gods,” to win the fight via Knockout. He is the first Middleweight fighter to ever hold the title twice and only the 4th out of 15 fighters to regain the title in an immediate rematch.
In the first UFC fight between the two, Pereira won with a TKO in the 5th round of the main event of UFC 281. The two have been rivals since 2017, with Pereira beating Adesanya twice in their young kickboxing careers. With both these fighters being very passionate, the rivalry has become very heated, but will there be a third fight? And who will win the trilogy?
Ethan Ramos ’23 is an avid UFC fan and watched the big fight between the two. He knows the two have fought 4 times already and says, “I don’t think they should fight again, and actually Pereira just talked about going up to 205 so I don’t think a trilogy should actually happen.” Pereira is a big Middleweight who had to cut a lot of weight for his fights, so moving up to Light heavyweight wouldn’t be a challenge.
Ramos thinks that Adesanya shouldn’t fight Khamzat Chimaev, a welterweight that is willing to move up to middleweight to get a title shot. Chimaev currently has an undefeated record of 12-0, including victories over stars like Gilbert Burns and Kevin Holland. Ramos says “It just makes no sense, they are planning for Khamzat vs Costa” (Paulo Costa).
Cash Rico ’25, tuned into the fight and says, “It was a good fight, I mean, I thought Pereira was going to end up getting him but Adesanya was playing possum and he got him.” Rico was shocked by the ending and says, “I just got up and there was nothing for me to say, it was just crazy. I didn’t know that was going to happen, it was a crazy knockout.”
Rico thinks that Adesanya will retire as the greatest middleweight of all time, even though many people think that title belongs to Anderson Silva. Rico believes that Adesanya might end up fighting up and comer Dricus Du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev in his next bout. Adesanya looks to fight Du Plessis, but it is UFC President, Dana White’s decision.
Jibran Mannriquez ’24 thinks that a trilogy needs to happen, to settle the score in MMA. Mannriquez also believes that Pereira has a better style of fighting than Adesanya. Mannriquez says, “Adesanya is better all around, but I like Pereira’s style better.” He was rooting for Pereira but gives his credit to Adesanya when he says, “It was so unexpected, I thought Adesanya was getting beat up at first, and then he came out and just hit him with that huge hook.”
Mannriquez thinks Adesanya will Khamzat Chimaev and thinks Pereira will move up to the Light Heavyweight Division. He looks to fight the champion, Jamahal Hill for the belt.
So will a trilogy happen? Or is the dust settled already between the two? Will the rivalry end 1-1 in the Octagon? Or will they face off again to end the rivalry?
Erik Rico
Erik Rico '25, is a first year journalist for the Redwood Gigantea. He plans to live in the sports section hoping to cover all aspects of Redwood Athletics. His hobbies include baseball, football, and traveling. He looks forward to attending as many Ranger Athletic events as possible.
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