Nigeria’s Israel Adesanya was knocked out in the fifth round during the main event at the UFC 281 when Brazil’s Alex Pereira pulled off an upset against him to become the new UFC middleweight champion thereby ending Adesanya’s reign atop the division on Sunday morning,
Adesanya, who was seeking revenge after losing two fights to Pereira in kickboxing back in 2016 and 2017, fought a nearby -perfect fight. He had Pereira out on his feet at the end of Round 1, but the Brazilian returned the favour in Round 5 to snatch it.
The 33-year-old Adesanya started the fight with cautiousness as he does however towards the end of the first round was able to stun Pereira.
Just before the end of the first round, Adesanya landed a huge shot that sent Pereira to the ground.
In the second round, Pereira dominated ‘The Last Stylebender’ and landed the takedown to level the judges’ scorecard.
Pereira knocked the Nigerian out in the fifth round. Adesanya was likely up on the scorecards, three rounds to one, when he slipped in the middle of the octagon. He tried to recover but it was the beginning of the end. As Adesanya retreated to the fence, Pereira followed and peppered him with punches to the face, stunning him and nearly knocking him unconscious. Referee Marc Goddard ended the fight as Adesanya’s body went limp, though Adesanya protested the stoppage as he attempted to regain his composure.
The result ends Adesanya’s title reign at six defenses and likely sets up a rematch sometime soon.