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Despite Israel Adesanya being gracious in defeat, Alex Pereira today dedicated a social media post to the former middleweight champion, insisting that the Nigerian-New Zealander should thank the referee for "saving his life".
Similar to their second bout in kickboxing, the Brazilian was clearly losing the clash until catching his opponent with a big left hook, ultimately earning him the win. Although the referee deemed 'The Last Stylebender' to not be intelligently defending himself, controversy still surrounds the outcome of the fight.
In a post on social media, Alex Pereira called out Isreal Adesanya for his comments following UFC 281, stating that if it wasn't for Marc Goddard stepping in, it could have ended much worse for the fan-favorite.
"Adesanya stop making excuses saying that the referee stopped the fight early… you have to thank him for saving your life. The way you were with your head down looking at the ground, I only needed one or two more hits to connect a good knee to your face so we wouldn’t know the outcome. As I said at that point in the video, you were a great opponent and I respect you for that. Assume the mistakes along with your team without taking away my merits. You will have one more chance! You’re next!"
The South American is keen on running it back one last time with Israel Adesanya, putting his newly acquired title on the line in a fight that would be the pair's fourth during their combat sports careers.
Check out what Alex Pereira had to say about his long-term rival in his Insagram post:
The controversy surrounding Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira at UFC 281
Israel Adesanya promised violence in his meeting against Alex Pereira and that is exactly what the fans got. 'The Last Stylebender' delivered a great performance throughout, almost finishing the challenger at the end of the first round.
Four rounds had passed and the 33-year-old was up three rounds to one with the matchup seemingly sailing in his favor. The story of the fight changed when fatigue set in and the then-champion was caught with a huge left hook. This was followed by a flurry from the former two-division Glory kickboxing titleholder.
The combination of strikes left Adesanya slumped over. Although he was still swaying and attempting to avoid the oncoming barrage, the referee decided he took too much damage, essentially trying to save him from a vicious knockout loss.
