It is entirely possible that Pereira is just Adesanya’s kryptonite and the one guy in the middleweight division that he just cannot claim victory over. Pereira was losing on the scorecards up until his power came into play and allowed him to take Adesanya’s title away with a knockout two minutes into the fifth and final round. We will see them square off yet again in the main event of UFC 287 this weekend.
While I can totally see why some are backing Pereira due to his power and chances of him landing a knockout shot again I still see Adesanya as the clear better fighter between the two. Adesanya hurt Pereira in their last bout but was not able to capitalize on it for a finish. He was also controlling the fight for the majority up until he became too comfortable and ultimately got caught which cost him the fight and his title.
I like the odds on the former champion to get his hand raised as he is better in all aspects of striking despite the power edge going to Pereira. But, Adesanya is good at controlling distance and should be able to pick apart Pereira to win rounds as I think he will play it safe to avoid any dangerous situations.
Bet: Israel Adesanya (-140)
Thanks for reading and best of luck!
