“I’ll Tell You One Thing…”: Israel Adesanya Opens Up on Emotions Behind Reclaiming the UFC Title and How It Compares to Winning It the First Time

After months of back and forth and trash-talking, Israel Adesanya finally shut down his doubters with a devastating KO win over Alex Pereira in the main event of UFC 287. While it did finally give the 33-year-old bragging rights for finishing the rivalry on his terms, more importantly, he also successfully reclaimed the middleweight title from the Brazilian.

Addressing the fight and how he felt about finally getting the belt wrapped around him yet again, Adesanya made an interesting remark on it during the post-fight conference. While doing so, ‘The Last Stylebender’ also made a rather funny analogy, as he compared the unique experience of winning the title the first time and reclaiming it back once again.

Israel Adesanya on reclaiming middleweight title at UFC 287

Interacting with the media following his win, a reporter popped the question on how he felt about winning the UFC gold back and how would he compare it to the first time he won it. Adesanya, in response, made a hilarious comparison as he went on to state that reclaiming the title felt much better from his experience.

“Hey man, they say it doesn’t feel as good as your first time, that first n*t. I’ll tell you one thing. It feels even better the second time because you get to do it again and again and again and again,” he said.

Of course, for Adesanya to win the title from his nemesis after months of getting trolled for his previous loss, this win definitely must have come as a rather sweet revenge. But despite all the previous enmity between the two, both fighters also appeared to have squashed their beef as a clip of them interacting after the fight has now been doing the rounds online.

Adesanya talks about an immediate rematch with Alex Pereira

During the press conference, the middleweight champ also addressed the idea of an immediate rematch. Considering that the scores are tied at one win for each, many fans have been demanding to see the two settle it with yet another fight.

The 33-year-old, in response to a question addressing the topic, shut down any talks of a rematch with Pereira. Stating that ‘Poatan’ had to work his way up once again, he also claimed that the Brazilian might be moving up to light heavyweight for his next fight; essentially killing all rumors of another fight.

In doing so, the New Zealander also happened to give credit to the fierce competitor that Pereira is. “…go cause problems at 205 and good luck to everybody else because he’s a m*****f****r  to deal with.” Adesanya expressed.

Read More: Watch: Fans React to Slow-Motion Clip of Israel Adesanya as He “Channelled Francis” in the 2 Punch Combo That Knocked Alex Pereira Out at UFC 287

While the chances of a rematch are pretty slim, the fact that both fighters showed immense respect for each other can at least serve as a sweet ending for the fans of Adesanya and Pereira.

Watch This Story: The Saga of Bad Blood Between Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya