Win a match after learning that a friend committed suicide 0:58
(CNN) --
Alex Pereira became the undisputed UFC middleweight champion on Saturday by defeating Israel Adesanya by TKO in a sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York.
It was a stunning comeback victory for Pereira, who was competing in his fourth UFC fight and eighth mixed martial arts (MMA) bout, and was the favorite against Adesanya, who was attempting to win his sixth consecutive defense of the title.
And for much of the fight, it looked like Adesanya would achieve that goal, with Pereira trailing in the judges' scores until the final round.
But the Brazilian recovered and hit Adesanya with a flurry of punches in the fifth round to force a referee stoppage and a TKO victory.
"I'm very happy," Pereira said afterward, according to the UFC website.
"It was an excellent job. And I'm not just saying since I joined the organization, but everything I've done to get here.
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"And what I did to be here getting the belt. It was very difficult. I had to overcome some tough opponents, but I did it."
Alex Pereira faces Israel Adesanya.
(Photo: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
The two men had met twice in kickboxing before entering the UFC.
Pereira had won both bouts, becoming the only man to have knocked out Adesanya.
Adesanya landed the first decisive blow of the night with a one-two that sent Pereira reeling, but it came in the closing seconds of the first round, allowing the 35-year-old to recover for the next.
And the defending champion's onslaught continued into the next three rounds, leaving Adesanya ahead on all three judges' scorecards going into the fifth and final round.
Knowing he had to find the finish in the fifth round, Pereira unleashed his full power and Adesanya was unable to respond.
Meanwhile, in the co-main event, Zhang Weili won the women's strawweight championship, the second title of her career, by defeating Carla Esparaza via submission with a rear choke in the second round.
"Today is like a dream come true. Ever since I lost the belt, I have dreamed of this moment," Weili said afterward, according to the BBC.
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