When Chael Sonnen explained why he'd never seen anything like Alex Pereira's fight against Israel Adesanya in the UFC

Alex Pereira's first fight with Israel Adesanya, at least under the UFC banner, was once hailed by Chael Sonnen. Years ago, the three-time title challenger took part in an interview on Middle Easy, where he touched on the bout prior to it taking place at UFC 281.

As Sonnen described it, the history between both men heightened the significance of the matchup, which was contested for the middleweight title. It was quite a statement, especially from someone who took place in two memorable middleweight title clashes with the division's GOAT, Anderson Silva.

"We've never tested this. We have never tested two pure kickboxers. I mean, there is no takedown in store. Even if one of them wants to pull the great double cross, they don't have that weapon, they've both spent all of their time, as far as it pertains, to wrestling defensively. All the time in practice was just to stop takedowns and stay on their feet. I mean, I'm very confident telling you we have a kickboxing match with the little gloves on for the unified belt."

Check out Chael Sonnen's past assessment of Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya (19:05):

While Sonnen's prediction for the UFC 281 main event turned out to be largely accurate, it did feature some wrestling and grappling sequences, with Adesanya being more successful. Ultimately, Pereira emerged victorious in a comeback victory which saw him win via fifth-round TKO.

In doing so, he set up a monstrous rematch with Adesanya for the middleweight title at UFC 287. Unfortunately for him, he was on the receiving end of a brutal knockout, marking his final 185-pound fight.

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Alex Pereira has proven himself as the UFC's most devastating striker

Alex Pereira's loss to Israel Adesanya at UFC 287 did nothing to dull his star power. Instead, he went on to become the UFC light heavyweight champion, stopping a multitude of high-level fighters with his patented left hook. However, he is, by no means, a one-trick pony.

Check out Alex Pereira's striking highlights:

For example, he finished Jiří Procházka with a switch kick, before authoring a systematic beatdown of Khalil Rountree Jr., where he blasted his midsection with body shots before an uppercut finally melted him.