Israel Adesanya has lost more times than he’s won against his rival Alex Pereira over the years, but he’s predicting that the current light-heavyweight champion will be beaten convincingly by Jamahal Hill in the main event of UFC 300 on Saturday night.
“Jamahal is just, I don’t think he’s scared, he’s got the knockout power, scary knockout power as well and Alex can get knocked out,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “He’s beatable, we all know this, and I’ve proven it [already].
“It’s five rounds so it’s going to be a slow start, first round they’ll figure each other out and get some shots off – Alex is going to be throwing the leg kick, [but] Jamahal will be finding his jab, and trying to get his fist to Alex’s head, not his chin, but his head.
“Jamahal is just going to try and touch him, but avoiding the leg kicks is the tricky bit and I know Jamahal has some remedies for that.
“I’m going to go Jamahal by KO – I think it’s going to be in the first two and a half rounds.”
It’s interesting to note that Adesanya’s point that Hill won’t be scared of the current champ was actually echoed by Pereira himself this week, pointing to the former titleholder’s determination being one of his biggest strengths.
“Sometimes it doesn’t matter if you are the most technical or most experienced guy if you don’t have enough cardio, or if you don’t have enough heart,” Pereira told ESPN.
“In kickboxing, I’ve had fights with athletes who didn’t have that much experience, but they have strength, they have the will to win, the determination, right? I think these people are the most difficult [to beat].
“Jamahal is a guy who has a lot of determination. I think there’s no point in a person having a lot of technique but not determination.”
