When Alex Pereira cost Drake $2 million, proved Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov's predictions wrong at UFC 281

Alex Pereira’s emergence in the UFC title picture has been a unique affair. In a mere seven UFC fights and 11 MMA fights under his belt, ‘Poatan’ has already become a two-division champion in the premier MMA organization. The remarkable feat speaks volumes about the Brazilian’s potential as a combat sports athlete after he created a lasting legacy in the Kickboxing realm.

However, not everyone believed in Pereira's potential when he first climbed his way up to the UFC title shot. Pereira had defeated then-UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya twice in their kickboxing days.

But when their UFC 281 title fight was announced, most of the industry experts favored Israel Adesanya given his massive experience and progression in MMA compared to a relative newcomer in Pereira.

UFC legends like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor openly favored ‘The Last Stylebender’ to emerge victoriously. Khabib wrote on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter):

“I don't miss Adesanya's fights and actually feel like he doesn’t get the credit he deserve. If he defends the title a couple more times, he will be on the same level with Jon Jones. Good luck @stylebender #ufc281”

See the tweet below:

Canadian rapper and musician Drake also placed a staggering $2 million bet on Adesanya's win.

At UFC 281 in November last year, Adesanya seemed to be getting the better of Pereira as the fight progressed. ‘The Last Stylebender’ even came dangerously close to finishing ‘Poatan’ towards the end of round one. However, Alex Pereira came out strong in the final round and finished Israel Adesanya via TKO.

Pereira's performance proved most of the predictions, including those of Khabib and McGregor wrong. But Adesanya was able to overcome ‘Poatan’ and defeat him in their UFC 287 rematch in April 2023.

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Dana White lays out condition for Alex Pereira vs Israel Adesanya 3

UFC CEO Dana White usually avoids making fights immediately after the events conclude. However, Pereira’s callout of Israel Adesanya created a lot of fan interest in the prospects of a trilogy fight materializing in the near future.

In the post-fight press conference, White clearly stated that Jamahall Hill would be the next opponent for Alex Pereira if he recovers from the injury in time.

While speaking about the potential trilogy fight, Dana White laid out a roadmap for Adesanya to get a shot at Alex Pereira. White explained:

"Alex moved up a weight class. I don't see Izzy moving up a weight class...If he wanted to move up and fight Pereira again, we'd probably do it. Probably give him a fight at that weight first. If he wins, then give him a shot at Pereira."