UFC 281 will arguably be Israel Adesanya’s toughest test for his middleweight crown.
The Nigerian-born mixed martialist will be making the seventh defence of his UFC title against Alex Pereira.
The Last Style Bender suffered two losses from Poatan including his only knockout defeat in Glory Kickboxing.
Here are 4 reasons Adesanya might lose his middleweight title
1. Pressure
Izzy claims he is not about retaining the belt but would bring the fight to Pereira when they clash at UFC 281.
However, the New Zealand fighter who remains unbeaten in the middleweight division has to protect his legacy after defeating all the top fighters on the roaster.
The 34-year-old will have to deal with keeping his cool despite his quest to exert revenge on his dangerous opponent.
2. Power
Adesanya’s last knockout was his second round stoppage of Paulo Costa during one of the defence of his title.
But Izzy’s last four fights has been decided by the judges which indicates he could going off colour.
On the other hand, three of four Pereira’s fights has Ben settled in the first rounds showing how dangerous he could be to Adesanya.
Pereira has exhibited his striking abilities in his previous fights including his left-hook, flying knee and the head-kick which all resulted into knockout victories.
3. History
During Israel’s Glory Kick Boxing days he suffered two painful losses to Poatan that saw him lose his belt.
The first fight ended in a split decision while the second sent the Nigerian crashing down on the canvass from Pereira’s famous left-hook.
This gives the Brazilian the mental advantage going into the fight with Izzy, and the latter has to settle with the demons of his past with caution and precision.
