Israel Adesanya says Sean Strickland must ‘fight with his ego’ if he wants to beat Alex Pereira at UFC 276.

It will be Sean Strickland (25-3 MMA) vs Alex Pereira (5-1 MMA) in a middleweight bout on Saturday, July 2nd at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada.

Strickland is coming into the Octagon with six wins in a row to his credit, the latest being against Jack Hermansson (22-7 MMA) in February of this year.

Pereira is entering the cage with 4 wins in a row, his latest victory against Bruno Silva (22-7 MMA) in March of this year.

Adesanya, when asked by ‘Sportskeeda MMA‘ during his UFC 276 Media Day press conference, to comment on the Strickland vs Pereira match-up, he had this to say:

“I think, honestly, if I’m being honest, he might get f***ed up, Strickland. If he doesn’t fight with his ego, he’ll get f***ed up.”

Israel Adesanya also shared his thoughts on the betting odds for Alex Pereira vs. Sean Strickland. Apparently several oddsmakers have given Pereira a 57% chance of beating Strickland in the middleweight battle. That labels Strickland as the underdog, even though he has 22 more MMA fights than Pereira who will be entering the Octagon for only the 3rd time. Speaking about those odds, Adesanya said:

“Underdog… I didn’t even know that. But am I surprised? Oddsmakers do what the oddsmakers do. Same with the guys who actually make the pound-for-pound rankings and all that s***. I never got a straight answer. It’s the same thing. Who makes these odds? What have they done? What do they know? What’s their credentials? So they can put the odds at whatever they want.”

Of course Adesanya (22-1 MMA) will be trying to defend his middleweight title when he enters the Octagon with Jared Cannonier (15-5 MMA) in the main event this coming Saturday.

Will you be watching UFC 276? Who are your picks for the win(s)?

Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!