Israel Adesanya makes prediction for Alex Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree UFC 307 main event
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Israel Adesanya is picking Alex Pereira to retain the light heavyweight title once again.
Pereira, the longtime combat rival of Adesanya, headlines Saturday’s UFC 307 event as he defends against Khalil Rountree in Salt Lake City.
“Just off the cuff, I’ll go Pereira because [of] momentum right now,” Adesanya said on The Adam Carolla Show. “Rountree doesn’t grapple. He likes to kickbox, he’s never gone for a takedown. ... If you’re going to do that with Pereira — and I’m the only one who has ever rocked him, or stood with him in the UFC, everyone else, he’s washed — Rountree, I feel like, if he can make it dirty and catch him, he can catch him. But it’s so hard to do with Pereira because, Rountree, his reach might not be able to get to him.”
Pereira won the first three meetings with Adesanya — including capturing the middleweight title from “The Last Stylebender” with a fifth-round TKO at UFC 281 in November 2022. Adesanya would regain the title five months later at UFC 287 with a devastating knockout, which served as the final time Pereira would compete at 185 pounds. “Poatan” moved up to light heavyweight where he captured the title, and successfully defended in 2024 with brutal knockouts of Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, and Jiri Prochacka at UFC 303.
While Adesanya believes Rountree is a dangerous fighter, he believes that Pereira will just be too much with his frame, defense, and power.
“I’m going to go Pereira, and I’m going to go TKO or KO,” Adesanya said. “I don’t know what round, but I just feel like it’ll be hard for Rountree to get passed that frame.
“[I can see] leg kicks, leg kicks [from Pereira], and he might catch Rountree as he comes in. Because Rountree is going to be attacking him. ... Paper can’t fight paper, so that’s why you’ve got to fight. But it’s a good fight and I think, again, Pereira by Round 2 or Round 3. But if Rountree does it, f*cking ridiculous.”
