Michael Bisping claims Israel Adesanya's pride is at stake in upcoming fight against Alex Pereira

Michael Bisping recently discussed Israel Adesanya's upcoming title defense against Alex Pereira.

Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is set to face a formidable opponent from the past, Alex Pereria, in the main event of UFC 281. The event is scheduled for November 13, 2022, at Madison Garden Square.

Adesanya, who currently boasts an impressive record of 23-1 in MMA, is favored to defeat his Glory rival in the upcoming title fight. However, the Brazilian cannot be ruled out as an easy opponent for the middleweight kinpin.

Pereira is the only fighter to have defeated the Nigerian-born Kiwi in combat sports, not once but twice. 'Poatan' won the first kickboxing fight via decision and knocked the middleweight champ native out cold in the second.

This being their third encounter former division champ Michael Bisping considers it to be crucial. This is so, especially for Adesanya, who is still believed to be bothered by his previous two losses at the hands of 'Poatan.'

Speaking of how the 33-year-old champion's pride is more at stake than his belt, Bisping said:

"And yeah, of course, well... they've got parts and parcels, don't they? But obviously, there's a bit of pride at stake for Izzy, you know? [Pereira] He's coming back, he's[Pereira] coming to haunt him [Adesanya]. He's coming to, you know, almost like the Bogeyman. Is this his Kryptonite? Is this the guy that's going to take away all his [Adesanya] hopes and dreams, his livelihood, he's gonna stop his run as champ and beat him for the third time. So when you put all of that together, it is...it's about beating this man once and for all."

Check out what Michael Bisping has to say about Israel Adesanya's upcoming encounter with Alex Periera:

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Israel Adesanya claims his fight against Alex Pereira to be the most important one for his legacy

Despite having fought almost every fighter in the UFC's middleweight division, Israel Adesanya's upcoming fight against the Brazilian is one of the most important in his career so far.

In a recent video posted to his YouTube channel, the 33-year-old champion spoke of how desperate he is to avenge his loss to Pereira:

"I was watching Claressa Shields and Floyd Mayweather talk on FaceTime when he fought Pacquiao. He said got up from the seat for every round. He always just thought like, ‘Forget every other fight. If there’s ever a fight I have to win, it’s this one. It’s this one. I feel that, felt that. That’s me right now. If there’s ever a fight, I have to win, it’s this one. That’s why everything is different this camp. There’s no excuses. If there’s ever a fight I have to win, it’s this one."

You can check out the video below: