It’s Chama time!
After delivering highlight-reel knockouts against Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka just a few months ago, Alex Pereira returned to the Octagon on Saturday night and added another impressive win to his resume via a fourth-round TKO against heavy-hitting contender Khalil Rountree in Salt Lake City.
‘Poatan’ was heavily favored to come out on top, but the ‘Brazilian Boogeyman’ faced more adversity from Rountree than he had in his last three fights combined.
Watching the main event was former four-time Pereira opponent and two-time middleweight champion Israel Adesanya who was on the edge of his seat (not literally) throughout the light heavyweight affair. Reacting to the scrap live on his YouTube channel, Adesanya nearly elbowed Andrew Schulz into the shadow realm while springing to his feet as Rountree landed a perfectly-timed hook that buckled ‘Poatan’ in the second stanza.
“This fight is bated breath because at any moment, even Khalil could still drop him, but Alex could knock him the f*** out…. Oh no! He’s fine, he’s fine – it was a flash [knockdown], it was a flash [knockdown].”
Pereira gets knocked down #Ufc307 #Rountree #Pereira pic.twitter.com/RUjG8aWOdj
— Carlos Antunez (@_iiito) October 6, 2024
Fortunately for Pereira—and Schulz—he was able to avoid taking any additional damage in the moment. Two rounds later, ‘Poatan’ would put it on Rountree and put him away with a barrage of strikes up against the fence.
“I can feel it, he’s on him – Pereira’s on him, I can feel it, I can feel it [and] now it’s going to be CHAMA time,” Adesanya said while watching the fight-ending sequence unfold.
Pereira gets the TKO, Rountree took a lot of damage there #Pereira #Rountree #UFC307 pic.twitter.com/8jdJaphXcl
— Carlos Antunez (@_iiito) October 6, 2024
‘Stylebender’ Lauds the Toughness of Khalil Rountree
Considering he lasted a lot longer than most of Pereira’s opponents, Adesanya put an ample amount of respect on Rountree’s name following the fight and added that even in defeat, Rountree’s stock is likely to go up significantly.
“F*ck, Khalil is tough but he’s not tough enough – toughness gets you hurt,” Adesanya said. “Good on him, he lasted longer than I thought he would but at least someone else got him to the fourth round, that shows how good Khalil is.
“He’s [Pereira] got some hard fights in front of him, but he is that guy right now… Shoutout to Khalil and his heart, fighting with a broken nose, a f*cked eye, he knew not to blow his nose in the fight, respect and stock will go up after this… What a moment.”
The loss to Pereira snapped Rountree’s five-fight unbeaten streak, but after the showing he delivered, we could certainly see him getting a top-five contender next and a potential rematch in the future.
Watch Adesanya’s full reaction video below:
