Alex “Poatan” Pereira has been a nightmare come to life for Israel Adesanya.
Not only did the intimidating knockout artist and current UFC middleweight champion prevail over Adesanya twice when they competed as professional kickboxers – once was by decision in 2016 and the rematch in 2017 ended with Adesanya out cold on the canvas – but years later Pereira decided to follow Adesanya into mixed martial arts and eventually caught up with him in the UFC.
Pereira, the first simultaneous two-weight Glory world champion, made his UFC debut in 2021 and three wins later – two were of the highlight-reel KO variety – he found himself face-to-face with Adesanya for a third time.
The pair headlined UFC 281 this past November at Madison Square Garden except this time they traded their 10oz kickboxing gloves for 4oz UFC gloves. Just like in their second meeting, Pereira’s power ended up being the difference and he finished Adesanya in dramatic fashion (again beginning with his sublime left hook) to become the new UFC champ.
The trilogy is about to become a tetralogy with the latest rematch headlining Saturday’s UFC 287 at Miami’s newly named Kaseya Center.
Adesanya is set to compete in his 10th consecutive UFC title fight, while this marks Pereira’s 10th professional MMA bout ever.
All three previous meetings were competitive with Adesanya coming close to victory each time, yet it’s Pereira up 3-0 in the rivalry.
Pereira was saved by the horn at the end of the opening round at UFC 281 when Adesanya caught him flush with a right hand-left hook combo that had him slightly wobbled as the Brazilian headed back to his corner.
Adesanya has since said he felt he would have finished the fight if he had an addition two or three seconds.
Pereira battled back and won the second round by landing more total strikes and securing a takedown on his only attempt of the bout.
The third round was Adesanya’s best. He took advantage of his more well-rounded MMA skill set and accumulated 3:47 of control time while administering several damaging ground-and-pound strikes. Do not be surprised if Adesanya takes a similar approach early in the fourth meeting. Adesanya also won the fourth round.
All three judges had Adesanya up 39-37 on identical scorecards and he would’ve retained his title so long as he made it out of the final round.
UFC 287 marks the second consecutive numbered UFC event headlined by an immediate title rematch. Leon Edwards defended his welterweight title as an underdog champion against Kamaru Usman at UFC 286 last month. Pereira will look to do the same versus Adesanya.
Both fighters officially made weight Friday morning and betting odds have tightened throughout the week as the anticipated rematch inches closer.
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ALEX PEREIRA VS. ISRAEL ADESANYA BETTING ODDS
Pereira to win +100 | Adesanya to win -125 | Draw +5200
Pereira by KO/TKO/DQ +195 | Adesanya by KO/TKO/DQ +295
Pereira by decision +525 | Adesanya by decision +190
Pereira by submission +1800 | Adesanya by submission +1000
Over 4.5 rounds +100 | Under 4.5 rounds -130
Adesanya opened and closed as roughly a two-to-one favourite back at UFC 281 and was on the verge of his sixth consecutive middleweight title defence before Poatan’s fifth-round comeback.
Adesanya is again the favourite heading into UFC 287, however it’s close to a tossup. The former champ hasn’t closed as this short a favourite since his first fight with Robert Whittaker when he initial won the belt in 2019.
This is the third consecutive fight in which Pereira has entered as the betting dog.
MAIN EVENT ROUND PROPS
Pereira in Round 1 +570 | Pereira in Round 2 +800 | Pereira in Round 3 +800 | Pereira in Round 4 +1000 | Pereira in Round 5 +1300 | Adesanya in Round 1 +900 | Adesanya in Round 2 +1100 | Adesanya in Round 3 +1300 | Adesanya in Round 4 +1600 | Adesanya in Round 5 +2000
Oddsmakers are giving a slight lean to under 4.5 rounds and the odds for the fight ending inside the distance are -178.
UFC 287 also features a welterweight bout between former title challengers Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal who’ll be fighting in front of his hometown fans.
Masvidal has lost three in a row dating back to 2019 but he still carries star power and has a history with current 170-pound kingpin Leon Edwards (Masvidal sucker punched Edwards in March 2019 and that beef has never been squashed). It’s not outside the realm of possibility Masvidal could work his way back into the title conversation with an impressive stoppage victory on Saturday.
On the other hand, if Burns picks up a one-sided win as the odds suggest are probable, it could end up being Masvidal’s final UFC appearance.
UFC 287 MAIN CARD (moneyline odds):
— Alex Pereira (+100) vs. Israel Adesanya (-125)
— Gilbert Burns (-410) vs. Jorge Masvidal (+285)
— Rob Font (+160) vs. Adrian Yanez (-200)
— Kevin Holland (-285) vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio (+205)
— Raul Rosas Jr. (-305) vs. Christian Rodriguez (+220)
PRELIMINARY CARD
— Kelvin Gastelum (-135) vs. Chris Curtis (+105)
— Michelle Waterson-Gomez (+125) vs. Luana Pinheiro (-165)
— Gerald Meerschaert (+150) vs. Joe Pyfer (-190)
— Karl Williams (-500) vs. Chase Sherman (+335)
— Cynthia Calvillo (+215) vs. Lupita Godinez (-300)
— Ignacio Bahamondes (-400) vs. Trey Ogden (+285)
— Shayilan Nuerdanbieke (-200) vs. Steve Garcia (+155)
— Jaqueline Amorim (-275) vs. Sam Hughes (+200)
(Odds via Sports Interaction as of Friday afternoon and subject to change)
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