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Israel Adesanya was defeated by Alex Pereira in round five of the main event at UFC 281. The fight was a competitive affair, with 'The Last Stylebender' heading 3-1 into the final round in the eyes of most.
'Poatan' unloaded a flurry of punches with three minutes left on the clock and caught Adesanya up against the cage. A series of powerful blows landed, and 'The Last Stylebender' was on shaky legs as the referee waived it off.
Israel Adesanya later appeared in front of the media for the post-fight press conference to reflect on the loss. 'The Last Stylebender' noted that the peroneal nerve in his left leg was compromised by a leg kick thrown by Pereira. Adesanya felt like the nerve damage was a significant contributing factor to his defeat:
"The fight was going my way. He hit my peroneal nerve so that's why my footwork was compromised. 'Cause I was wondering, even when I tripped and did the backwards roll, I had to do a roly-poly 'cause I was like, 'Sh*t!' I just tripped over and it's not like me, so kudos to him for investing in those calf kicks. 'Cause yeah, it cost me."
Watch the video below from 2:00:
Israel Adesanya shares his verdict on the stoppage of Marc Goddard
Israel Adesanya was stopped by Alex Pereira in the fifth round of their fight at UFC 281. 'The Last Stylebender' appeared to be ahead on the scorecards but was caught with a barrage of punches against the fence.
After a number of unanswered punches, referee Marc Goddard stepped in to wave off the fight. There were minor protests from Adesanya, and the stoppage has been a topic of discussion following the event.
The jury appeared to be divided on whether it was a good stoppage or not. Israel Adesanya seems to think that the referee made the right decision. 'The Last Stylebender' joined Megan Olivi of ESPN MMA to discuss the fight:
"In the moment, yes. But I think I trust my coaches and my manager Ash, when they said it was a good stoppage."
Watch the interview below from 1:35:
Israel Adesanya has the second-longest UFC middleweight title reign of all time, and an immediate rematch looks likely. Both the former and the new champion have said they would be interested in doing so.
Can Adesanya finally get the victory over Alex Pereira in a rematch? Or will 'Poatan' make his combat sports record 4-0 against a man that very few have been able to beat?
