“I got him by knockout …” – Henry Cejudo has CLEAR favourite going into the Israel Adesanya – Alex Pereira fight
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Israel Adesanya (L), Henry Cejudo (C), Alex Pereira
UFC 281 takes place at the Madison Square Garden in New York on the 12th of November, 2022. The PPV mega event will be headlined by UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and fellow #4 contender Alex Pereira
The story, however, is not as simple as it looks. On paper, it might seem like the two are strangers, having not met in the UFC. However, the duo have faced each other in the past, as part of their kickboxing careers. On both the occasions, Alex Pereira got the better of Israel Adesanya – once by decision and the other time by knockout. Notably, that was the only KO loss of Adesanya’s career.
UFC fans and fighters have had their pick as to who will come on top of the other. One of the people to have expressed a clear opinion as to who could win is Henry Cejudo.
He said, in a YouTube video posted to his channel, “As good as Israel Adesanya is, Alex Pereira still has better striking. He knocked him out the last time they fought; he beat him the first time. If this fight goes to the feet, I gotta go with Pereira… I got Pereira by knockout. I think he’s got more diversity and things of that nature.”
Henry Cejudo, then, is a clear fan of Pereira’s jab, which most recently ended Sean Strickland’s night early. Alex Pereira has also been in red hot form since arriving in the UFC. Of the 3 opponents faced so far, he has brutally finished two of them. Israel Adesanya has also remained undefeated in the UFC since 2021, having lost to Jan Blachowicz, in an attempt to capture the light heavyweight belt. Since, he has defeated Marvin Vettori, Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier.
“Already doesn’t like Izzy” Fans highlight Henry Cejudo’s bias in his prediction
While many stars have picked Alex Pereira’s crazy power as the difference between the pair, Henry Cejudo’s adulation might have a veiled aspect to it, as the fans pointed out as well.
Though he doesn’t train Pereira, Cejudo is well connected with him – as Eric Albarracin, who is Paulo Costa’s trainer and Alex Pereira’s close confidante, also trains with the American ex-UFC double champion.
Fans were quick to notice this, and they called his favouritism out. Some of the comments were, “Bro literally has been wanting Izzy to lose ever since he beat costa”, “He’s pretty biased bc he already doesn’t like Izzy. He’s apart of costa’s crew. Kinda expected from him.”, and also “I’m guessing some people ain’t watched the full fights.”
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No matter who trumps on the 12th of November, one thing is for sure – both fighters will bring their A-games to the octagon. The stakes are way too high and the fighters are personally involved with each other. Expect to see a barnburner at UFC 281!
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Udayan Mukherjee
(382 Articles Published)