Dan Hooker details how "good bloke" Israel Adesanya made sure his teammates got to the afterparty despite losing his title to Alex Pereira - "I was adamant it wasn't going to happen"

Israel Adesanya's three-year reign as the middleweight champion came to an end against Alex Pereira at UFC 281, but that did not stop him from looking out for his teammates.

Adesanya fell to his former Glory Kickboxing foe in the final round of the main event after weathering his onslaught and countering it effectively for four rounds. 'The Last Stylebender' was ahead on the scorecards before 'Poatan' found the opening and capitalized to mark his third victory against the Nigerian-born New Zealander in combat sports.

However, Israel Adesanya's City Kickboxing teammate Dan Hooker revealed how the former champion did not let his loss dampen spirits in their camp. Hooker won his main card bout against Claudio Puelles via knockout and ultimately had a great night out courtesy 'Izzy'.

'The Hangman' said in an interview with Submission Radio:

"Yeah, people have no idea how much of like a good bloke Israel is. And how much of like a good friend and a good mate and a good training partner. And how much he does for the boys. Like yeah, for him to lose like that fight and to knowingly do a press conference, doing that and scheming like how can I check the boys into having a good night."

Hooker described how Israel Adesanya ensured that the team had fun despite his tough loss:

"He's like, 'Well, I'll put on a brave face.' Like he came in and he sold it. He convinced us! Like he came in and he was like, 'That's us boys! We're all going to the afterparty!' I was adamant it wasn't going to happen. Like he invigorated all of us to go out and have a good time and have a good night."

Catch Dan Hooker's full interview with Submission Radio below:

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Joe Rogan praises Alex Pereira's performance against Israel Adesanya at UFC 281

Joe Rogan and his fellow commentators Jon Anik and Daniel Cormier reflected on the UFC 281 card in its aftermath.

They made mention of Alex Pereira's progress as a mixed martial artist since his transition from kickboxing. 'Poatan's' performance against Israel Adesanya was not perfect as he was dominated by the former champion in a couple of rounds, but he showed his resolve and displayed his knockout prowess.

Rogan stated:

"It's otherworldly [the accomplishment], and you know the difference is like, Israel of course is a specialist, and that specialty is his striking... Alex Pereira is one of the greatest strikers in kickboxing history. He's a real killer and we saw it tonight that it translates to MMA. But boy did he get tested, especially in the first round."

Catch the commentary team's complete thoughts on Alex Pereira below: