UFC 287 just closed the curtains on the final event of the evening. The April 8 card was the promotion’s highly anticipated return to Miami for the first time since 2003. Fans witnessed some of the most spectacular finishes and results in the Miami-Dade Arena. However, fans reserved a good chunk of hype for the main event graced by Israel Adesanya against middleweight champion Alex ‘Poatan‘ Pereira.
The bad blood has been long-simmering between the duo for almost seven years as they locked horns twice in the kickboxing realm. However, the two faced each other in the MMA world not too long ago. A year after his UFC debut, the former two-division GLORY champion earned his shot at the title. Pereira knocked out ‘The Last Stylebender’ in the 5th round of their highly anticipated matchup at UFC 281.
Ready to meet a familiar foe!@AlexPereiraUFC is all business before our #UFC287 main event! pic.twitter.com/4LAilBWvMf
— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023
The archnemeses walked out with utmost confidence toward the Octagon. The MMA world had their eyeballs stuck to their screens in one of the most highly anticipated rematches in the company’s history.
PART IV IS HERE!@AlexPereiraUFC vs @Stylebender starts NOW! #UFC287 pic.twitter.com/ot5kBh4o1u
— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023
Unlike their first Octagon outing together, tonight’s rematch lasted for only two rounds. Both opponents appeared locked in during the whole time. Using the word ‘timid’ would be unfair to Alex, however, he appeared really cautious in front of a formidable opponent in ‘Izzy’. Overall, round 1 witnessed the duo engaging with several low and calf kicks. There weren’t many significant punches from either side.
In round 2, the duo started finding a lot of angles and went straight for it. There was a moment when the two appeared to exchange a flurry of punches, where either could have finished the fight. But, Adesanya pulled himself out of the pocket on time. Soon after, Alex found a similar moment from the 5th round of his UFC 281 victory where he had Israel pressed up against the cage.
While smothering Israel with a barrage of hooks and a knee, Alex let his guard lose. The Nigerian-born Kiwi took advantage of this and unloaded a right hand, landing flush and dazing the Brazilian. The follow-up put the champion out cold on the canvas.
Israel Adesanya mocks Alex Pereira and his son
Alex Pereira, though a Brazil native, belongs to an unsung tribe called Pataxó. Be it kickboxing or MMA, the 35-year-old has always walked out using a traditional ritual. Pereira imitates the style of a cautious hunter, who then shoots an arrow after locking on a target. ‘Poatan’ performs this ritual to connect with his indigenous roots from the tribe, while summoning confidence at the same time.
The 35-year-old had used this ritual in GLORY as well, a promotion where he defeated ‘The Last Stylebender‘ on two separate occasions. The choice of walkout song has always remained “Itsari” by Sepultura.
Go Octagon-side for THE knockout of the night 🔥 #UFC287 pic.twitter.com/RSB0P6aiZq
— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023
Israel has trolled his opponents in the past, either using anime references or just for the sake of selling a fight. In what could be Adesanya’s most important victory tonight at UFC 287, the 33-year-old chose to mock the champion using his patented bow and arrow ritual post KO’ing him in a devastating style.
As soon as Pereira hit the canvas, Izzy’s hammer fist put a nail in the coffin of their highly touted rematch. However, the cherry on top was when Adesanya got back up and appeared to throw about 3 bows to the body of an unconscious Alex. The scenes inside the Miami-Dade Arena were truly a sight to behold.
Wow izzy. Doesn’t forget he got his revenge on his son pic.twitter.com/mX23VsiQlZ
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) April 9, 2023
And just when this wasn’t enough, Adesanya pointed to Alex’s son and dropped himself to the canvas. This is in reference to their GLORY days when Alex KO’ed Izzy using his signature left hook. During the time of the fight results announcement, one of Alex’s sons mocked Israel right after his defeat. Israel had appeared to take it lightly back then, but he waited until tonight to respond.
Talking about the incident in the press conference afterward, Izzy added, “I’m petty bro, I remember so the first time he knocked me out in Brazil, his son came into the ring and started to just lie dead next to me. And, I’m like, ‘You f***ing little a**hole, I’ll whoop you a** if your dad don’t it do for you. But then yeah, I looked at his kid and I pointed at him and I saw him and I was like, ‘hey, hey, hey, (followed by imitation of Pereira’s brutal KO).'”
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