Former UFC middleweight champion shares his prediction for Alex Pereira vs Israel Adesanya at UFC 287

UFC 287 is hours away and a former UFC middleweight champion has come out with his predictions for the main event.

Alex Pereira will fight Israel Adesanya in a rematch that will see them replay the UFC 281 main event. 'Poatan' is looking to defend his title against a renewed Israel Adesanya who is fighting to keep his legacy in the octagon alive. Ahead of this highly awaited match-up, former middleweight champion Michael Bisping gave his predictions for the championship fight:

"I think Pereira is gonna go out there, he's gonna be oozing with confidence, I think his takedown defense would have dramatically improved, I think his submission defense will be better, he's gonna be better all round. He's fitting into this mould as the champion, he's feeling the money.....He's an absolute force of nature, he hits so hard, and he's pushing himself to the limit."

He added:

"Basically, what I'm saying, I believe that Alex 'Poatan' Pereira gets the job done, once again. Now, granted, it's not a very confident bet."

Although Alex Pereira is the overwhelming favorite in Michael Bisping's eyes, he is not entirely confident the Brazilian will win because he believes Israel Adesanya has the ability to finish the fight.

(Quotes from 8:10 onwards):

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Gilbert Burns gives a chilling response to Jorge Masvidal during UFC 287 ceremonial weigh-ins

Jorge Masvidal and Gilbert Burns do not have any bad blood between them. However, during the ceremonial weigh-ins ahead of UFC 287, 'Gamebred' made it clear that he was going for the knockout and insisted that it was 'nothing personal' against Burns but he had to 'knock his a** out'. In response to his message, the Brazilian offered a chilling response to Masvidal's home crowd:

"I love it. Keep that same energy. I'm gonna kill your boy tomorrow let's go."

Gilbert Burns is not one to usually get involved in trash talk. The Brazilian lets his fighting do the talking for him. This was the case throughout the build-up to his fight against Jorge Masvidal in the UFC 287 co-main event. The pair have no 'beef' but are two of the best fighters in the division and fans can expect a war in the co-main event.

The winner of this fight willl be in a strong position to break into title contention and possibly challenge for the title or an interim belt.

Take a look at the video: