Adesanya suggests Alex Pereira relies on “juju” to win UFC fights

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Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has backed claims that his bitter rival Alex Pereira uses black magic to win fights.

Adesanya made this statement after Jiri Prochazka, who has lost twice to Pereira, accused the Brazilian of using black magic and rituals to ensure his victories.

The Brazilian is Adesanya's biggest rival and the two have faced each other four times – twice in kickboxing and twice in MMA. Adesanya lost both kickboxing fights against Pereira before switching to MMA.

(RL) Israel Adesanya knocks out Alex Pereira in the UFC middleweight championship fight during the UFC 287 event at Kaseya Center. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Pereira later joined Adesanya in the UFC, handing the Nigerian his first MMA loss.

However, that defeat was avenged in Miami, where the Stylebender knocked out Pereira and reclaimed his middleweight title.

Pereira then moved up to light heavyweight and became a two-division champion.

With his fight against Khalil Rountree Jr. looming at UFC 307, Adesanya reiterated his belief that Pereira uses “juju” before his fights and predicts he will do so again before facing Rountree.

“You know what Jiri said about the whole Juju thing? This is real,” Adesanya said during an appearance on the JRE MMA show.

“The guy beat me in Madison Square Garden, the biggest arena in the world, just like he beat me in Brazil.

“I beat him, he got injured at the end of the first round, but then he caught me in the last round.

“It's something spiritual – his ancestors or his people praying for him. But I also have my own prayer warriors. My mother and father are fasting, and people in the spirit world are also praying for me.

Israel Adesanya reacts after knocking out Brazilian. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

“There's just something special about the way he behaves. He knows how to have a good rest.

“After he knocked me out at Madison Square Garden, I thought, 'Let's do this again, Dana (White).'”