Alex Pereira has been told he is "jealous" of UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya ahead of the pair's third meeting.
Pereira, 35, will look to become a UFC champion in his fourth fight for the promotion when he faces former kickboxing rival Adesanya at UFC 281 on November 12. Pereira has already beaten Adesanya twice in kickboxing, winning a controversial decision in 2016 before knocking him out in their rematch the following year.
Adesanya signed with the UFC a year after his knockout loss to Pereira and hasn't competed in kickboxing since. The Nigerian-born New Zealander is unbeaten at middleweight and will attempt to continue his impressive reign at the weight class against Pereira in New York. MMA analyst Chael Sonnen thinks Pereira demanded a third fight against Adesanya because he envies what the UFC champion has achieved since ditching his kickboxing career.
Do you think Alex Pereira is jealous of what Israel Adesanya has achieved in the UFC? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
"The two-time winner is the one wanting a rematch and thinking about the opponent," Sonnen said on his YouTube channel. "That's interesting to me. I [Alex Pereira] was better. I had a better art. People didn't know me. I didn't make money. I didn't get a fight on pay-per-view. I didn't go become famous. I feel like I'm better, so I had to follow him over here and take what he's got."
"Well you know, you've got my interest though. That's very compelling. The guy that wins doesn't generally chase the other guy. Now when you're talking about fame and money, you're talking about jealousy. You're talking about envy. The corrupt desire to possess something that somebody else has. That's powerful stuff.''
Pereira's title fight with Adesanya will mark a full circle moment for the Brazilian, marking almost a year to the date he made his UFC debut as he also fights 'Stylebender' in the same arena as his inaugural fight for the promotion. 'Poatan' said he has been watching Adesanya for the past three years as he predicted the pair would fight again despite his two wins against him.
“It’s going to be a year since I signed with the UFC. Two years before signing, I already wanted to join the promotion. I won’t say I’ve been studying him specifically, but I’ve been watching him, his behaviour. The way he moves, the way he fights. For him, fighting me now is something new. It’s not news to me, though. I’ve been waiting for it for three years, because I knew I’d fight him. He didn’t know, but I did," Pereira told MMA Hoje.
