Before the Nigerian-born star’s comeback at UFC Seattle on March 28, longtime adversary Israel Adesanya received words of support from former two-division champion Alex Pereira.
Adesanya, who has lost three of his past four fights and has been sidelined for more than a year since losing to Nassourdine Imavov via knockout in February 2025, will take on rising challenger Joe Pyfer at the Climate Pledge Arena in a contest that is largely seen as crucial for the 36-year-old.
Pereira sent a public message to his old rival on Instagram.
It’s fight night again on Saturday. With all due respect, Israel Adesanya and I shared the octagon and the moments that formed a part of my path. I learned a lot from that loss, which forced me to grow as a man and as a fighter. Pereira noted, “I developed, matured, and used it as fuel to reach a higher level in the sport and in life.”
“I understand what it means to step in there, the years of work, the pressure, and the sacrifice, regardless of rivalry.” I hope you have a fantastic battle because of this. Focus and give it your all. We continue to change. CHAMA, I’ll see you at the summit.
They are rivals in both MMA and kickboxing. Before Adesanya won the middleweight title again via knockout at UFC 287, Pereira defeated him twice under Glory of Heroes and once more at UFC 281. Later, at UFC 312, the two were spotted cageside together, indicating a thaw in their relationship.
The fight with Pyfer was the biggest of Adesanya’s life.
“I constantly feel like I need to prove something. Making people say, “He’s the GOAT,” is what I want to accomplish in this battle. I want people to understand that after taking a year off and losing three fights in the skid, he is still that good. He declared, “I feel unstoppable.”
I believe that people are still unaware of my entire range of abilities. I simply want to demonstrate a lot of my abilities that I haven’t yet. I’ll do things I’ve never done before because I think they’ll be offered to me.
Pereira is aiming for heavyweight action against Ciryl Gane at UFC Freedom 250 this summer as he continues his upward trajectory.
