Ultimate Fighting Championship: Pereira Reignites Rivalry With Adesanya

Ultimate Fighting Championship light-heavyweight contender Alex Pereira has reignited his rivalry with erstwhile middleweight champion Israel Adesanya by expressing involvement successful warring Carlos Ulberg, Adesanya’s grooming spouse and sparring companion.

Ahead of his rematch with Magomed Ankalaev astatine UFC 320 connected October 4, Pereira was asked astir erstwhile opponents Jiri Prochazka and Khalil Rountree, who besides combat connected the card, but alternatively chose to notation Ulberg arsenic a imaginable aboriginal opponent.

Speaking done a translator, Pereira said, “I’ve fought them both, truthful it’s gonna beryllium a bully fight. I spot the imaginable successful some of those guys, but obviously, I privation to spell successful determination and triumph my loop back, and then, I’m not going to beryllium the 1 to pick, but I deliberation Carlos Ulberg is simply a feline who’s coming up. He’s been doing a bully job, and that’s what I’m looking for: to enactment connected bully fights. Especially due to the fact that I’ve fought beauteous overmuch each the different opponents who are close determination astatine the top.”

Ulberg, known arsenic ‘Black Jag’, has enjoyed a nine-fight tally successful the UFC with a 56 per cent knockout/technical knockout rating. He demolished Dominick Reyes successful the archetypal circular astatine UFC Perth connected September 28.

The Auckland-based combatant erstwhile served arsenic Adesanya’s sparring partner, mimicking Pereira’s movements, bushed and powerfulness to assistance hole his teammate for their battles.

During a caller speech with FOX Sports Australia, Ulberg said, “And portion arsenic fighters we’re each evidently each connected our ain missions, helping hole for a feline similar Alex Pereira is thing I’ve done. But of course, each combat is different. And if I americium to combat Pereira, it would beryllium antithetic to the fights Israel had.”

Pereira and Adesanya stock 1 of the fiercest rivalries successful modern combat sports, having met 4 times crossed kickboxing and mixed martial arts. Pereira took Adesanya’s UFC middleweight rubric successful 2022, earlier Adesanya reclaimed it successful 2023 with a knockout victory.

If Pereira wins backmost the light-heavyweight rubric from Ankalaev, helium volition go lone the 2nd fighter, aft Randy Couture, to clasp 2 reigns successful 1 part portion besides being a two-weight champion.

Speaking to MMA Junkie, Pereira said, “That’d beryllium immense – truly important, I’ve done everything precise rapidly successful the UFC, much than anyone else, truthful I’m going to instrumentality this accidental and truly prehend it.”

The Brazilian made his UFC debut successful 2021 and has fought 11 times successful astir 4 years, winning 2 titles and defending his light-heavyweight loop aggregate times.

Ankalaev dethroned him successful March astatine UFC 313, winning by decision.

Pereira enters UFC 320 arsenic a betting underdog for the archetypal clip since his 2 battles with Adesanya. Despite his upcoming rematch, helium acknowledged that thing compares to his past with the Nigerian-born New Zealander.

“Nothing compares to that triumph implicit Adesanya, with the full past and kickboxing, everything that we went through. A batch of radical sometimes deliberation that to beforehand a fight, you’ve conscionable got to accidental a batch of things and person this animosity, and that’s not what it is. You’ve got to person that history, that background. (Ankalaev is) doing it each wrong,” Pereira said.