UFC commentator Joe Rogan, who has been covering the sport for over two decades, called Israel Adesanya’s knockout of Alex Pereira at UFC 287 one of the greatest he has ever seen. The knockout came in the second round of their bout at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, where Adesanya reclaimed the middleweight title with a brutal finish.
The two fighters had met three times before—twice in kickboxing and once in MMA—with Pereira winning each encounter. This time, the Nigerian‑born Adesanya avenged those losses. After absorbing a barrage of strikes, he landed two massive counter right hands that sent Pereira crashing to the canvas. Rogan, who has witnessed countless knockouts since joining the UFC in 2002, said, “That is one of the greatest knockouts I have ever seen in my life. What a knockout, what a way to regain your championship in a series where you are behind. Izzy has shot the lights out of Alex Pereira.”
In his post‑fight interview, Adesanya expressed gratitude to his opponent, saying, “I told him before, ‘Thank you for all that you’ve done. Thank you for beating me because, by beating me, you made me a better fighter, a better person.’ In this camp, I didn’t f*** around. If you know me, you know I like a vacation, but I didn’t f*** around—I stayed on the grind. I get tired so that when I get in here, I don’t get tired.”
The only person who could be more pleased with the result than Adesanya himself was rapper Drake, who had placed a massive bet on the fight. Drake wagered £402,544 (N228 million) on Adesanya to win, plus an additional £322,000 (N183 million) on a knockout victory, netting him a total payout of £2 million (N1.24 billion).
Comments are closed for this story.