Coach Firas Zahabi explains how a checked leg kick led to Israel Adesanya's downfall at UFC 281 - "Your foot kind of goes to sleep"

Alex Pereira defeated Israel Adesanya at UFC 281 to be crowned the new middleweight champion of the UFC. This was his third victory over 'The Last Stylebender', although the first two bouts were contested at kickboxing.

Adesanya looked good in the opening rounds, almost knocking out Pereira in the final few seconds of round one. However, in round five, 'Poatan' landed a brutal left hook while Adesanya had his back against the cage, proceeding to unleash a flurry of shots and strikes on 'The Last Stylebender'. After absorbing several strikes with no visible response, the referee decided he had seen enough and stopped the fight.

Coach Firas Zahabi, who's known for coaching UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre, recently shared his thoughts on the matchup. When asked if Israel Adesanya's compromised leg was the cause of his defeat, Zahabi said:

"Izzy threw a low-kick and it got blocked and he stumbled... He fell, did a backroll and kicked Pereira in the leg again. I think his leg was fine. I think when you kick somebody and go shin-to-shin...Your foot kind of goes to sleep a little bit. You hit a nerve, I'm not sure why or what the biological reason is, but your foot goes numb... You put your foot back on the floor, you don't feel it."

Zahabi further analyzed the last few minutes of the fight by saying:

"He [Adesanya] recovered quickly, he threw the kick again, his foot was not broken...He looked fine. I don't think that's what caused him to get knocked out. What caused him to get knocked out was that he found himself up against the fence and couldn't do his lean-back defense."

Catch Firas Zahabi's comments (17:11-19:20) below:

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Israel Adesanya wants to fight Alex Pereira again

Israel Adesanya wants to fight Alex Pereira in an immediate rematch, regardless of whether the Brazilian is still the champion.

'The Last Stylebender' saw history repeat itself on November 12 as he lost his middleweight title to his old kickboxing rival, Alex Pereira. 'Poatan' got the better of Adesanya in round five via TKO, securing his third career win over 'The Last Stylebender'. Previously, Pereira bested Adesanya via unanimous decision in their first kickboxing bout at Glory of Heroes 1 in 2016. Their rematch saw Pereira beat Adesanya via a third-round KO at Glory of Heroes 7 in 2017.

However, Israel Adesanya seems keen on an immediate rematch, which could be warranted given his past achievements and popularity among fans. Appearing on Ariel Helwani's show, The MMA Hour, the 33-year-old said:

"I'll still fight him...I hope he's the champion. But, I'm saying hypothetically, if he [Pereira] isn't, I'll still fight him. I'm crazy bro. I can beat him. I know I can beat him. You've seen I can beat him...It's my ego maybe but I'm allowed. I just know I'm better."

While there is no official confirmation as to who will fight for the middleweight title next, there is certainly a good chance that we will see Israel Adesanya get his rematch, with Dana White also refusing to rule out that possibility.