Dana White recently made a ‘Special Announcement’ revealing some of the fights the UFC was working on. After experiencing a stacked card at UFC 283, fans will be licking their lips seeing what lies ahead. In the live segment, White reveals that some big names like Israel Adesanya are making their return at UFC 287.
Previously, it was rumored that Jorge Masvidal will be fighting soon. As such, it appears that he has finally accepted Gilbert Burns’ challenge and will be facing him in the co-main of UFC 287. Out of action since March 2022 and currently #11 in the welterweight rankings, ‘Gamebred’ will be coming in with a lot to prove.
ABSOLUTELY STACKED đš@DanaWhite announces the full lineup for #UFC287 in April and it's HUGE! pic.twitter.com/0kPaRTCABA
— UFC (@ufc) January 27, 2023
Most notably, we will finally see Israel Adesanya rematch Alex Pereira for the middleweight title. At UFC 281, Pereira beat Adesanya to claim the title. In what was mostly a close-fought affair, a leg injury to Israel gave Pereira an opening, allowing him to finish the fight.
As such, the two middleweight will run it back for the fourth time ( 2nd in MMA). Further, White revealed the rest of the card including Kevin Holland vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio, Christian Rodriguez vs. Raul Rosas Jr., Rob Font vs. Adrian Yanez, and Gerald Meerschaert vs. Joe Pyfer. Also rumored to be on the card is Kelvin Gastelum, who will take on Chris Curtis.
With the event set to take place on April 9 in Miami, Florida fans are already hyped. Mind you we still have UFC 284, 285, and 286 still to come! According to the UFC, their 30th year is going to be for the history books, and the fans are here for it!
Who wins the rematch between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira at UFC 287?
Meant to be the highlight and the main event of the card, Adesanya and Pereira will lock horns yet again. After their bout at UFC 281, Adesanya felt as though it was an early stoppage. However, looking back at the footage, he was finally able to come to terms that it was indeed the right call by the referee.
Coming into the last round of the fight, Adesanya was the clear leader on points. However, he got caught by a quick flurry and stumbled to find his balance. As such, Izzy suffered a fifth-round TKO loss and lost his undisputed championship. Due to a problem with his leg, Israel was unable to move away from Pereira and kept taking punishment till the fight was called off.
ROUND 2 đ„@AlexPereiraUFC and @Stylebender will meet again at #UFC287! pic.twitter.com/kgRchDbRcX
— UFC (@ufc) January 28, 2023
Currently, Adesanya sits at the #1 spot in the middleweight division of the UFC. Having made five defenses of his title, “The Last Stylebender” was on his way to becoming one of the best ever. As such, he will be looking to move past the setback and win back his title.
Previously, Adesanya also hinted at some pre-existing injuries and revealed that he will be taking some time to heal properly. Moreover, he will be looking to end the running meme of Pereira always being a step ahead of him. “Poatan” has beaten Izzy twice in kickboxing and once now in MMA. Although simply an inside joke, Adesanya will finally want to put an end to it.
Who do you think wins the rematch between Israel and Alex? What did you make of the fight card? Is it the most hyped card this year? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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