Israel Adesanya gives Khalil Rountree props following UFC 307 effort against Alex Pereira

Israel Adesanya believes Khalil Rountree did himself plenty of favors despite a loss.

Rountree challenged Alex Pereira for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship on October 5th. “The War Horse” was finished in the fourth round, but he was certainly competitive against arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter today.

Adesanya thinks Rountree just raised his stock higher than ever.

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Israel Adesanya Praises Khalil Rountree for UFC 307 Effort

Khalil Rountree may have fallen short against Alex Pereira, but he has earned the respect of fellow fighters. Israel Adesanya took to his YouTube channel to give Rountree his flowers (via MMAJunkie.com).

“He lasted longer than I thought he would,” Adesanya said. “At least someone else took him to the fourth round. It shows how good Khalil is. Again he’s (Pereira) got some hard fights in front of him, but he is that guy right now, he’s on.

“Honestly, I called it, but I thought it was going to be earlier. Shout out to Khalil because fighting with a broken nose and the intelligence not to blow his nose in the fight, respect. His stock goes up after this. What a moment.”

What’s next for Rountree will be interesting to follow. Many MMA fans have been calling for “The War Horse” to collide with former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill.

Recently, Rountree shared his thoughts on the potential matchup with Kevin Iole.

“Absolutely. I think it’s almost inevitable,” Rountree said of the Hill fight. “I think he’s ranked number three. So anyone up there in the Top 5 is kind of inevitable [for me]. So let’s see what happens. Pretty shortly here, I’ll be talking to the matchmakers, and the bosses and see what they think…

“I’m here for it all, I’m not done. I’m going to continue and I believe that I’ll have another chance at fighting for a belt. Whether it’s Alex or someone else, if someone’s able to take it from him. I think that fight can definitely still happen.”

Keep it locked on BJPenn.com for the latest updates on Khalil Rountree’s next fight.