Alex Pereira has said that Israel Adesanya and his camp are “mentally shook” ahead of their fight at UFC 281 on Saturday.
Pereira defeated Adesanya twice in kickboxing before he became a two-division champion in Glory, while “The Last Stylebender” transitioned full-time to MMA shortly after his second loss to Pereira, joining the UFC a year later and starting the incredible run that led to him winning the UFC title.
The Brazilian not only thinks his previous wins in kickboxing over the UFC champion have him worried, but also that “he knows how dangerous I am.”
“He knows I’m not like the other guys he fought, otherwise the results would have been different in both times we fought,” Pereira said.
“He knows I’m different, and I’m proving that. I’m showing that in my three UFC fights. I’m being honest here. He doesn’t want this fight. Nobody wants. His team doesn’t want it.
“People close to him don’t want it because they know the risk. Is he good? Is he the champion? He’s there because he did what he did. Everybody knows my potential and sees my evolution.
“Right after I got in the UFC he said he would like to fight me maybe after four fights but ‘calm down’. He wanted [to fight me], but only after I did four fights. Why?
“He had in his mind I could lose to someone and he would say, ‘Is that the guy you want me to fight?’ I never believed that, but some people did. Others realize now he was bluffing. That’s not what he wants.
“Right after it was announced that my next fight would be for the belt against him, he and his whole team said it was a bit unfair that I was fighting for the belt because I just got here, that Adesanya did so many fights and I should do the same.
“Man, I’m just hearing that and taking it as something positive for me. That shows me he pretended he wanted [to fight me] and when I got here, his whole team was against it. That shows all of them, he and his team are mentally shook.”
