UFC 287 is on this Saturday, with the main event being the title bout for the middleweight belt between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya. Also, we will see another high-profile clash, the welterweight battle Burns vs. Masvidal. Here are the previews for both fights.
Pereira VS Adesanya
The Poatan defeated Izzy in the first meeting via KO in the last round, proving that, for the moment, he is the only middleweight who can compete with the Last Stylebender. Pereira posted his third win over Kiwi, and the second via KO, though the previous two were in kickboxing.
Pereira is massive for this division, and apart from his cut when he reaches the weight limit, we are pretty sure that the Brazilian never fits the requirements. He is huge and at least 10 pounds heavier on the fight day, which gives him a significant advantage over other guys. But that isn’t the reason why he wins. Poatan is incredible in the stand-up, with devastating punches and pretty slick movement for his size.
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya were intense as ever as they came face-to-face for the final time before their #UFC287 rematch.
Full story: https://t.co/cklmOMDysh pic.twitter.com/FNj0vWVNI5
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) April 7, 2023
Adesanya stated that he developed the game plan for a win against Pereira. Now, we all know that Izzy knows how to learn and adapt, so this might be, in fact, true. The Kiwi is one of the best and the most intelligent fighters who reached the status of the best because of thinking and adjustments. In case some of you forgot, Adesanya had a lead on the scorecards at the moment of the stoppage. Also, the end of the round prevented him from finishing Pereira, who ate one punch and was visibly shaken.
We believe that the former champ has enough quality and knowledge to beat Poatan, who is a magnificent fighter. We think this would happen because of Adesanya’s above-mentioned capability to improve and implement previous experiences. Be sure he knows how to be effective now, much better than in the first battle.
Pick: Adesanya wins 5/6 at BetXchange
Burns VS Masvidal
Gilbert Burns hopes to get his name back into title talks, and Jorge Masvidal is the first step in that direction. Some fans and journalists may not give Durinho the respect he deserves, and he wants to change that. Gamebred’s stock is falling, which could be his last chance to maintain his relevance.
Burns had a great opportunity to win the title, but Kamaru stopped the fight in the third round with a knockout after Burns had dominated the first sequence and rocked Usman several times. The Brazilian is one of the best jiu-jitsu specialists in the UFC, and his grappling is flawless. Also, Durincho is versatile in the octagon, with six knockouts, six decisions triumphs, and nine submissions in 21 triumphs.
💥CO-MAIN EVENT💥
GILBERT BURNS vs. JORGE MASVIDAL
Peut-être le prochain challenger au titre ? #UFC287 pic.twitter.com/RFYK4boXKE
— MMA TIME (@MMA__TIME) April 6, 2023
Masvidal has now dropped three straight major engagements. His last fight was against Colby Covington, while the previous two were against Kamaru, both for the welterweight title. Gamebred was in contention for the title because he has won three consecutive events, all by knockout, against Darren Till, Ben Askren, and Nate Diaz.
We root for Masvidal all the way, but he’s going to lose this fight by stoppage. Durinho plans to take down Masvidal all night because of his obvious grappling advantage over Gamebred.
Pick: Burns 1/5 at BetXchange
