Fighting at Madison Square Garden isn’t new for Israel Adesanya.
Main eventing at Madison Square Garden, on the other hand, is a brand-new experience for the middleweight champion for his title defense to cap UFC 281 on Saturday.
But having that previous experience four years ago, when he knocked out Derek Brunson six months before securing the interim crown, informed his approach ahead of this fight against Alex Pereira.
“It feels different because I removed myself from the vibe of the city,” Adesanya told The Post during Wednesday’s media day. “… We’re in the woods and just steady working.”
Several fighters spoke Wednesday about their experiences with fighting at the Garden, including Michael Chandler telling reporters he recalled the building shaking during his fight of the year clash with Justin Gaethje last November.
Israel Adesanya punches Jared Cannonier at UFC 276. Zuffa LLCThe crowd for Adesanya’s 2018 victory stood out in his memory, too.
“I do remember the crowd, when I finished and I was dancing,” Adesanya said. “There’s one point I stood around, had my arms up, and I basked in it for a second. It was beautiful.
“[Chandler is] right. Everyone knows, when you fight at MSG, it’s a different feeling.”
The stakes, clearly, are higher this time. Adesanya is putting his championship on the line against Pereira, a rival from their professional kickboxing days who is officially 2-0 against the UFC champion. Adesanya believes he performed well enough in the first meeting to earn the victory, but the rematch ended in a Pereira knockout victory.
It’s tempting to write off Pereira as the better striker. Heck, even Adesanya repeatedly told reporters he couldn’t understand why he is the betting favorite this weekend. But — surprise — kickboxing and MMA are different sports. Obviously, mixed martial arts fighters must account for potential takedowns and be prepared for grappling and submissions.
Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira at a UFC 281 press conference. Zuffa LLCBut there’s more to it than that, says one of the world’s preeminent strikers who knows his way around both sports.
“[What’s different are] the way you shell up, the way you defend yourself, the gloves are a lot bigger. These gloves, I can find my target a lot easier with these, and I have more pop,” Adesanya said. “… The game’s just different. The game’s different. You can’t be as stupid with your strikes and as inefficient with your strikes in MMA as you are in kickboxing.”
