Alex Pereira shocked the UFC world with his TKO victory over Israel Adesanya to claim the middleweight title at UFC 281.
The Brazilian fighter only had three fights in the UFC leading up to the highly anticipated clash between the pair, but their previous encounters at kickboxing, combined with Adesanya clearing out the division made this the fight to make.
Heading into the fifth round, it looked as though Adesanya would once again defend his belt as grew stronger as the fight went on. However, a powerful left hook that rocked the champion and the fight was stopped after a flurry of punches from Pereira.
ALEX PEREIRA JUST FINISHED ISRAEL ADESANYA!!! 😱
AND NEWWWWWWW!!! 🏆#UFC281 pic.twitter.com/ke79appLEU— #UFC281 on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 13, 2022
In one of the shocks of the year, Adesanya’s title reign since 2019 is over, while Pereira has yet another victory over the New Zealand fighter.
It’s likely we will see a rematch between the pair in 2023, with their long rivalry across two different sports fascinating to see.
It was a night of real drama at UFC 281, with big finishes all across the card. In the night’s co-main event, Zhang Weili recaptured the strawweight title with a second round submission over Carla Esparza.
Zhang Weili submits Carla Esparza to become a TWO-TIME UFC strawweight champion 🏆#UFC281 pic.twitter.com/eY20OUj6cm
— #UFC281 on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 13, 2022
Weili has emerged as a real fan favourite due to her very humble personality and her classic fights with Joanna Jedrzejczyk and looks to have brought her game to another level in her second title reign.
In the fight of the night, Dustin Poirier made his return to the octagon with a third-round submission victory over Michael Chandler. In a fight between two fighters that never put on a boring display, Poirier got back to winning ways in his first fight since losing to Charles Olivera in UFC 269.
Dustin Poirier submits Michael Chandler in the third round in one of the greatest fights of 2022 🔥🔥🔥#UFC281 pic.twitter.com/LgAK54fBfu
— #UFC281 on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 13, 2022
It was the end of the road for former champion and legend of the sport Frankie Edgar, who was viciously knocked out by Chris Gutierrez in the first round of his final fight.
SEE ALSO: 'The Irish Takeover Part 2:' Paul Hughes On Taking Back 'The McGregor Belt'
