Alex Pereira happy that rivalry with Israel Adesanya "stayed in the ring," also acknowledges the respect from 'The Last Stylebender'

Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira share one of the greatest rivalries in modern combat sports as it dates back to their respective kickboxing careers. The two stars have shared the octagon in two separate title bouts, with each picking up a finish.

Despite fans clamoring for a rivalry-settling trilogy bout, both fighters have reiterated that the rivalry is likely a thing of the past.

'Poatan' recently expressed that he is happy the feud stayed in the ring while acknowledging respect that he recently received from 'The Last Stylebender'. Speaking to Ariel Helwani on his show, the light heavyweight champion stated, via his translator and coach Plinio Cruz:

"I think it was a real nice thing that he did. I have a lot of respect in the fact that the rivalry stayed in the ring. You know what I mean? We're waving that off. And I like the way that he said that [he's] cheering for me and saying that he's the only guy that ever beat me. In his place, I would have done the same. I want to be the only guy that beats somebody so I think it was very nice and I like that a lot."

Check out Alex Pereira's comments on Israel Adesanya below:

Pereira was able to give Adesanya his first ever mixed martial arts loss at middleweight when he defeated him via fifth-round TKO to capture the 185-pound title at UFC 281 in November 2022. 'The Last Stylebender' emphatically reclaimed his title six months later, knocking 'Poatan' out in the second round. He later won 2023 Knockout of the Year honors for handing his rival his only loss since joining the UFC in November 2021.

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Israel Adesanya recently reiterated that his rivalry with Alex Pereira is done

Israel Adesanya recently expressed that his rivalry with Alex Pereira is over. Speaking on his YouTube channel, FREESTYLEBENDER, ahead of 'Poatan's' latest title defense at UFC 307, the two-time middleweight champion claimed:

"I'm going to go Alex Pereira, by second round finish. And, look, if Khalil does it, it would f**king shock the world, but also it would be like, well, someone else has done it and they can f**king get off my d**k. So, it's like, well, go deal with that now. Go have that story to, you know what I'm saying? My story with him is over so I don't know. People always, just the 'Poa**rds' still, 'it's still 3-1, d**n it'."

Check out Israel Adesanya's comments on Alex Pereira below (13:35):

Adesanya and Pereira have expressed mutual respect to one another throughout their rivalry. 'Poatan' previously shared that he hopes the two are able to train with one another now that they will no longer be opponents.