The 33-year-old boxer and kick-boxer turned Mixed Martial Artist Israel Adesanya believes that he has done a lot for Alex Pereira and takes credit for his quick rise to fame and success in the world of MMA. Adesanya will face Pereira in the octagon for the UFC 281 middleweight event on November 13.

Adesanya (with a 23-1 record in MMA and 12-1 in UFC), has two losses against Pereira (6-1 record in MMA, 3-0 in UFC) in the kickboxing world – once by Knock Out and the other by decision, fights the Brazilian once again. This time, however, the stakes will be higher as he will have to put his UFC middleweight belt on the line in his sixth defense of the title.

Taking credit for Pereira’s success, Adesanya said that the Brazilian wouldn’t have been here without his presence and leadership. “Without me, he wouldn’t be here,” Adesanya said on The MMA Hour.

“Without me, he would’ve been exposed a long time ago. I cleared the way. I cleared the division, so there was not really anyone else to fight. I cleared the way for him to get to the top.”

Having made his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut in November 2021, Pereira has been fighting for less than a, however. However, he has had a meteoric rise since making his debut and has already taken a 3-0 win record. 

He has knocked out Andreas Michailidis and since has defeated Bruno Silva and Sean Strickland.

In less than four days, Pereira will face the biggest test of his UFC career as he faces Adesanya for the middleweight title at the Madison Square Garden in New York.

On the other hand, Adesanya has faced heavy criticism for his recent performances at 185lb, having failed to secure a stoppage in his last three fights, winning them all by comfortable decisions. His underwhelming display recently against unsuccessful challenger Jarod Cannonier in July also saw him come under heavy fire and intense scrutiny. UFC fans have even threatened to stop buying pay-per-views for his contests.

The 33-year-old revealed that he burst into tears following his unanimous decision victory over Cannonier. He was also upset with his performance after pressuring himself to put up a strong display on International Fight Week.