"He's not as smart as me in the cage" - Israel Adesanya believes fighting "one-dimensional" Alex Pereira early on in his career is advantageous for him
Israel Adesanya isn’t holding back with how he feels about his next challenger, Alex Pereira. Adesanya believes the former Glory kickboxing champion doesn’t have the tools to defeat him in MMA.
Adesanya recently spoke with ESPN’s Meghan Anderson regarding his upcoming title defence against Pereira at UFC 281. During the conversation, he mentioned that ‘Poatan’ is not as smart as him in the cage:
“I definitely know he’s not as smart as me in the cage. It’s giving Robert Whittaker before UFC 243. I said the same thing, I’m like, ‘You’re acting out of character.’ It’s giving (Paulo) Costa vibes as well before (UFC) 253. I was like, ‘Why are you making all these skits?’ But yeah, I didn’t say anything back then. I don’t react."
'Izzy' continued:
"I’m not going to respond properly until we’re in that octagon, then I’ll respond properly. And when I respond properly, then he’ll understand what I’m saying.”
Despite ‘The Last Stylebender’ losing both kickboxing fights to Pereira, he does have an advantage in terms of MMA experience. He has competed in 22 MMA bouts, while ‘Poatan’ has only competed in seven. Adesanya feels that he will exploit 'Poatan's one-dimensional game:
“He’s very one-dimensional. He’s early on in this game as well, so I’m even glad to get him now and yeah, he’s early on in this game.”
It will be interesting to see what surprises both fighters have in store for each other.
Check out the full interview clip:
Adesanya is one of the many talented kickboxers in the UFC
Israel Adesanya’s kickboxing highlights are INSANE https://t.co/LcMCaFVdaE
'Izzy' is one of many former kickboxers competing in the UFC. There have been others, Alistair Overeem and Mirko Cro Cop, who have enjoyed success after transitioning into MMA in the past. 'The Last Stylebender' continues to prove kickboxers can also be elite MMA fighters.
Other elite kickboxers competing in the UFC at the moment include Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson, Germaine de Randamie, and 'The Last Stylebender's upcoming opponent Alex Pereira.