UFC 287 LIVE: Adesanya knocks out Pereira – result

In one of the more unusual stories from the evening, Donald Trump was greeted by huge cheers as he sat in the front row at UFC 287 alongside Mike Tyson and Dana White in the Miami-Dade Arena.

Former US president Trump is known to have a friendship with UFC president White and has attended numerous events staged by the mixed martial arts promotion.

Israel Adesanya is a UFC champion once again after delivering a vicious knockout to his greatest foe Alex Pereira late in the second round at UFC 287 in Miami.

The Nigerian-born fighter who grew up in New Zealand had lost his championship to the Brazilian in November last year but when he was backed against the cage he pulled off a spectacular KO which he said “was from the gods” in his post-fight interview.

Both fighters had a cautious first round with a barrage of leg kicks from both ends with Pereira targeting Adesanya’s right calf, much like he did in their last UFC bout.

They opened up in the second round, standing toe-to-toe and both landing punches, but it was when Adesanya was against the cage and wearing body shots when he unleashed two huge right-hand punches which stunned and then knocked down Pereira.

The 33-year-old then threw a hammer-fist while Pereira was on the mat and the referee quickly stopped the fight before he could land a second.

Adesanya celebrated his victory by mimicking shooting three arrows into his floored opponent, reclaiming his middleweight championship belt.

In the co-main event, Gilbert Burns put on a dominant performance against Jorge Masvidal, winning via unanimous decision in the welterweight division.

It would turn out to be Masvidal’s last fight in the UFC, with the veteran announcing his retirement after the fight. He fought 52 times, won 35 times with 18 of those knockout victories.

In the bantamweight division, Rob Font knocked out Adrian Yanez with a vicious right hook in the first round.

Earlier in the card, Christian Rodriguez defeated Raul Rosas Jnr via decision in the bantamweight division which went all three rounds while Kevin Holland knocked out Santiago Ponzinibbio with a left-hook to the jaw in the third round of their welterweight bout.

On top of his significant prize money scooped an extra $50,000 for the UFC’s Performance of the Night bonus - not a bad night’s work.

Since the fight ended, some rivals have put themselves forwards to fight Israel Adesanya:

Israel Adesanya’s vicious knockout of Alex Pereira was described as a “masterpiece” and a “statement made” by fellow UFC stars, while commentator Joe Rogan called it “one of the greatest KOs I’ve seen in my life”.

Read reaction to a historic night in Miami:

Israel Adesanya shocked middleweight rival Alex Pereira with a stunning knockout at UFC 287 by “playing possum”.

Adesanya, who had lost their previous three fights across kickboxing and MMA, seemed to be in serious trouble in the second round after a series of kicks to his lead leg by Pereira, and the Brazilian moved in for the kill.

Pereira began to unload on his seemingly suffering opponent as the New Zealander backed against the cage, and it appeared only a matter of time before he secured a fourth win in their long rivalry.

But after absorbing a flurry of punches and a knee to the head, from seemingly nowhere Adesanya responded with a vicious right hook which visibly stunned Pereira, and the rapt crowd in Miami’s Kaseya Center roared as the challenger followed it up with a two-punch combination which sent his opponent crashing to the canvas and a hammer fist to end the fight.

“I played possum,” Adesanya later explained, suggesting he lured his opponent into a false sense of security.

More from Adesanya here:

Here are tonight’s results in full:

Main card

Israel Adesanya def. Alex Pereira (C) via second-round KO (4:21)

Gilbert Burns def. Jorge Masvidal via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Rob Font def. Adrian Yanez via first-round TKO (punches, 2:57)

Kevin Holland def. Santiago Ponzinibbio via third-round KO (punches, 3:16)

Christian Rodriguez def. Raul Rosas Jr via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Prelims

Kelvin Gastelum def. Chris Curtis via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Luana Pinheiro def. Michelle Waterson-Gomez via split decision (29-29, 29-28, 29-28)

Joe Pyfer def. Gerald Meerschaert via first-round TKO (punches, 3:15)

Loopy Godinez def. Cynthia Calvillo via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)

Early prelims

Ignacio Bahamondes def. Trey Ogden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Steve Garcia def. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke via second-round KO (body punch, 0:36)

Sam Hughes def. Jaqueline Amorim via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)