UFC legend Israel Adesanya has praised his former rival Alex Pereira despite his TKO defeat at UFC Freedom 250.

Last weekend, Alex Pereira attempted to become the first three-weight world champion in UFC history. He went head to head with Ciryl Gane, but in the end, he came up short as he fell to a devastating TKO loss at the hands of the Frenchman.

While Pereira was quick to protest against what he deemed to be illegal shots to the back of the head, he certainly didn’t look like his usual self, especially when compared to his UFC light heavyweight title triumph over Magomed Ankalaev.

RELATED: VIDEO | Referee Herb Dean responds to Alex Pereira’s harsh criticism in detailed post-fight explainer

In a recent reaction video, Pereira’s former foe Israel Adesanya had the following to say about how it all played out.

Pereira praises Adesanya

“Ciryl is no slouch, but f*ck,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “Dare to be great. He (Pereira) is a one of one. He’s great. You can’t fault him. That jab, I said it was educated. It’s f*cking accurate. Shoutout to Ciryl, he did it.”

“Alex Pereira, he dared to be great,” Adesanya said. “He went for it at a new weight, something that’s never been attempted before, never even been fathomed, and he did it. So, congrats to him, but especially congrats to Gane because he’s the one that shut it down, let him know what heavyweight is about. But still, it’s just good to see people attempt or achieve great things.”

Quotes via MMA Junkie

While their rivalry was certainly intense, it’s nice to see two legends of the game make amends like this and have each other’s backs.

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