Rapper Drake loses millions after betting on Israel Adesanya to beat Alex Pereira at UFC 281

Israel Adesanya fought Alex Pereira with his middleweight title on the line on Saturday night. The pair headlined the UFC 281 card that was held at the Mecca of fighting, Madison Square Garden.

Canadian rapper Drake decided to bet on one of the most highly-anticipated fights of the year. The betting company Stake sponsors the 'Hotline Bling' singer.

Drake lost $2 million Canadian dollars by betting on 'The Last Stylebender' to beat Alex Pereira. He bet $1.5 million Canadian dollars on the Kiwi, with the payout coming in at a little over $2 million.

'The Last Stylebender' has become another victim of what netizens call 'The Drake Curse'. Almost every sports team or fighter the Canadian supports or bets on ends up losing.

Israel Adesanya broke the curse twice before, most recently when he fought Jared Cannonier and had this to say about 'The Drake Curse' in his post-fight press conference:

"Oh, shout out to Drizzy [Drake's nickname]. I don't know what he won but yeah, what f***ing curse?"

He added:

"I've broken all the curses, the Drake curse now, so stupid. I've broken the shorts curse because apparently, I changed my shorts from black and gold."

Netizens argue that Adesanya's luck has run out.

Take a look at the interview:

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Israel Adesanya believes the stoppage against Alex Pereira was early

Israel Adesanya fought his heart out in the main event of UFC 281 but suffered the same fate at the hands of Alex Pereira as in their last fight.

After dominating the majority of the fight, in the final round, Adesanya was undone by 'Poatan's' signature left hook. He tried to escape, but the flurry of punches that followed was enough for the referee to stop the contest.

The former champion believes referee Mark Goddard stopped the fight early:

"I was fine, first thing I said to Euge [Eugene Bareman] or the ref [Mark Goddard] was like I was fine. 'Cuz I was still lucid, I was in there. But yeah, s**t happens."

Adesanya believes that he would still be the champion if the referee had not stopped the fight. However, knowing Alex Pereira's power and the fact that Adesanya was not defending the punches, the referee called a stop to the contest.

Dana White on the stoppage:

Take a look at the video: