Israel Adesanya claims he'd "still be champion" if referee allowed him to carry on fighting despite being rocked by Alex Pereira: "I've seen worse stoppages"
Israel Adesanya was defeated for the first time in his career at 185lbs against Alex Pereira at UFC 281. 'The Last Stylebender' was TKO'd in the fifth round as 'Poatan' snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.
Adesanya was 3-1 up on all three judges' scorecards heading into the final round. However, he was caught with a series of powerful punches from Pereira that led to Marc Goddard calling an end to the bout. The stoppage was protested by 'The Last Stylebender' in the cage.
During the post-fight press conference, Israel Adesanya said that he would still have the title had the referee not intervened:
"My ego would say, 'At least let me go out on my shield.' But I don't think I would have gone out, 'cause I was still there. I've seen worse stoppages, bring back Steve Mazzagatti, I would have been fine. He might have won that round but I would still be the champion."
Watch the video below from 3:10:
Israel Adesanya will hope to avenge his loss to Alex Pereira and plans for an immediate rematch have been whispered. 'The Last Stylebender' is second in all-time title defenses at middleweight. The former champion will want to reinstate his authority at 185lbs as soon as he can.
Israel Adesanya compares knockout loss to Alex Pereira at UFC 281 to previous kickboxing KO defeat
Israel Adesanya was knocked out by Alex Pereira for the second time in combat sports after 'Poatan' finished the long-standing middleweight champion in the fifth round.
The Brazilian had been somewhat dominated over the previous four rounds and was down 3-1 in the eyes of many. However, he connected with a flurry of punches in the final round that caused Adesanya's equilibrium to spiral.
'The Last Stylebender' also suffered a knockout loss to Pereira when they met in kickboxing back in 2017. Adesanya compared his loss five years ago to the one he suffered at UFC 281 when he spoke to Megan Olivi of ESPN MMA:
"It's kind of like the same story as the last kickboxing fight we had. You know, I'm up [on the scorecards], I'm having him, I'm staying focused and then he just catches me. But this time I felt like I was there. I was really there."
Watch the interview below from 1:10: