Alex Pereira has taken a neutral stance on whether he wants to face Israel Adesanya for the third time in the UFC, leaving the decision to his rival.
In April, Adesanya reclaimed the middleweight title from Pereira, five months after losing it in their initial octagon encounter. Following Adesanya's defeat by Sean Strickland in September at UFC 293, the title changed hands once again.
The rivalry between Adesanya and Pereira began long before their UFC days.
Alex Pereira appears to be moving on after calling Israel Adesanya out for another fight 👀
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) December 20, 2023
📰 https://t.co/KZHGE1B91Y pic.twitter.com/cSLpDtqoNX
In 2015, Adesanya and "Poatan" first faced off in a kickboxing match, with Adesanya losing by unanimous decision. Their rematch in 2016 saw Pereira triumph once again, finishing Adesanya in the third round.
Pereira secured the light heavyweight title by defeating Jiri Prochazka in November. Despite initially calling for a trilogy fight with Adesanya after his win, it appears Pereira's stance has now changed.
“It doesn’t matter for me,” Pereira said via a Portuguese translator at a recent Q&A in France hosted by Ares FC. “I called him out in the cage after the title win, and I wanted to give him the chance, and I saw he was not giving me any respect for this – he was laughing about it and making some jokes.
“So for me, it doesn’t matter anymore. I gave him the chance. If he comes up, nice; if he doesn’t, it doesn’t matter.” -Alex Pereira
Prior to Adesanya’s loss to Strickland, he had said that he may be interested in fighting Pereira at 205-pounds, but since, he has expressed no interest in moving up in weight. In fact, “The Last Stylebender” claims to be taking an extended period of time off from fighting.
“I doubt if he really wants to fight me because, talking serious, he won once against me,” Pereira said. “It was his dream to win against me, he did it. So now getting into this cage again with me, he knows everything can happen, and he can lose again, so I’m really doubting if he’s motivated to fight me again.
“Like I said, I never choose my opponents. I don’t know what happens in the future, but I never choose. If he wants to fight, I welcome him in the cage.” -Alex Pereira