“Gonna Take Him Down and…”: Israel Adesanya Gives Out His Bold Prediction on the Fight Between His Two Former Rivals Alex Pereira and Jan Blachowicz

Alex Pereira is finally moving to the light heavyweight division. He will make his debut as a lightweight against veteran Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. However, his bitter rival and two-time middleweight champion Israel Adesanya believes that Blachowicz will get the better of ‘Poatan’.

When the UFC revealed the fight card for UFC 291, many fans were worried that Pereira might not get enough time to heal from his previous fight. Moreover, he will be fighting a well-known veteran of the division. But ‘Poatan’ has decided his next move and will fight on July 29.

Israel Adesanya believes that Jan Blachowicz will defeat Alex Pereira

The former middleweight champion was supposed to sit out for six months at the least after the devastating knockout defeat against ‘The Last Stylebender’. However, it doesn’t matter to Israel Adesanya. The Nigerian-born Kiwi fighter believes that Jan Blachowicz will get the better of ‘Poatan’ at UFC 291. Adesanya said, “I think Jan’s gonna take him down and beat him up there.”

Having faced his first UFC defeat against Jan Blachowicz, Adesanya explained the good bits about the Polish fighter’s fighting style. “Jan will stand with him [Pereira] for a bit, but eventually, just get him to the fence or try to take him down the way he took me down,” said the UFC champion. Adesanya is confident that Blachowicz will use his takedown skills more than stand and fight Alex Pereira.

‘The Last Stylebender’ talks about his feelings after losing to Blachowicz at UFC 259

Israel Adesanya was hoping to become a double champion after winning his first middleweight title at UFC 243. He successfully defended his title twice and decided to challenge Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight title at UFC 259. Izzy expressed his feelings after securing the first loss of his UFC career. He said, “It wasn’t frustrating at the time. I was still catching him sometimes.” He added, “But also I was just like, ‘Yeah, just respect.'”

Israel Adesanya had his own idea about how he’ll fight Blachowicz. But the former light heavyweight champion’s takedown skills overwhelmed ‘The Last Stylebender’. Adesanya added, “I thought he was gonna come and fight the way he normally fights. But he did that at the right time [and] took me down.”

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It is important to note that Pereira is well-versed in the striking department. While Jan Blachowicz has good takedown skills and striking defense. It will certainly be a great matchup as both fighters are two of the biggest UFC stars on the roster.

What is your prediction for Alex Pereira’s light heavyweight debut?

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