Alex Pereira Breaks His Silence on Israel Adesanya’s Taunts on His Son After UFC 287 Win

• Alex Pereira has seemingly taken no offence from Israel Adesanya's taunts on his son
• The Brazilian fighter lost his middleweight title to Adesanya at the Kaseye Centre
• Adesanya 'repaid' Pereira's son by trolling him after knocking out his father

Alex Pereira has finally broken his silence on the ongoing taunts by Israel Adesanya directed at his son.

Adesanya beat Pereira via a vicious knockout on April 8 to reclaim his middleweight title in Miami on April 8.

The win asserted the Nigerian-born fighter's authority in the MMA after making his transition from kickboxing a few years back.

Adesanya's issue with Pereira's son

However, much of the aftermath of the UFC 287 fight has been centred around Adesanya finally getting his revenge on Pereira's 12-year-old son.

Israel Adesanya: The Last Stylebender trends after knocking out Alex Pereira at UFC 287

UFC

Strange as it sounds, Adesanya has had a long-standing 'beef' with Pereira's son since 2017. At that time, Pereira beat Adesanya in a kickboxing match in Sao Paolo. During the celebrations, Pereira's son mocked his father's opponent.

6 years later, the now 33-year-old Adesanya returned the favour by repeating the same gesture after he defeated Pereira. The son was among the crowd at the Kaseya Centre that also included embattled former USA President Donald Trump.

Pereira responds

Pereira has now revealed that he perhaps could have reacted in the same way Adesanya did if he were in the same situation.

"I don't know if I wouldn't do the same. I can play with him. I've always played with him and teased him. It was something that happened. It is seven years ago, he was enduring it and I saw the joy that he had after the knockout because this was his dream.

Israel Adesanya reclaims UFC Middleweight belt with stunning knockout victory over Alex Pereira

UFC

That was his dream and he made it, but we're comparing him [his son] with a child who was five years old at the time, right? I don't have that mind," as quoted by GMS.

The two wrestlers have maintained a level of great respect between them despite their fights over the years.

How Pereira's son reacted

Sports Brief had reported that fresh footage had shown how Pereira's son reacted after Israel Adesanya taunted him.

In the video spotted by Sports Brief, the son, who was draped in a yellow-looking T-shirt, turned away after Adesanya pointed to him. Some media outlets report that the taunt made him cry.

Adesanya responded to the viral video by saying:

"I have ruined Christmas 2023."