Alex Pereira’s 2024 campaign included three successful title defences, and his willingness to step in on short notice only added to his reputation.
Pereira became even more popular thanks to how often he helped out the UFC, even when that meant fighting without a full camp.
But that approach may have caught up with him when he lost the belt to Magomed Ankalaev, a fight where he later admitted he was not at his best.
Pereira backed up that claim in emphatic fashion at UFC 320, reclaiming the title with a dominant win over Ankalaev.
Straight after his victory, Pereira set his sights on the UFC’s White House card, an engagement that would sideline him for eight months.
Alex Pereira feels his foot injury might have prevented him from risking a White House appearance
Pereira appeared to sustain an injury at UFC 320, despite Ankalaev entering the fight already injured. The Brazilian suspected he had broken his foot during one of his many leg kicks.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, ‘Poatan’ addressed his team after regaining the title and weighed in on some of his past decisions.
“I think I did the right thing this time. I was doing things maybe not 100% disciplined. I’m a human being, I’m a failure, but I’ve always been trying to fix it… I tried to do something better, but this time it was 100%. I started doing the right job after the fight I lost.”
He also discussed how the injury could end up working in his favour.
With initial reports suggesting that recovery could keep him out until just before UFC’s White House event, Pereira indicated that staying sidelined might not be such a bad thing.
“Things happen, I break my foot. But, is that good? Sometimes it is because I’m 100%. I don’t have a scar on my face, then I’m fighting in March. Ok, then I’m going to do a fight that I want so much in the White House.
“I’m there in March, I break my finger, it’s going to be a stressful camp. I hurt myself, injure my knee. Not here. It’s time to recover. There’s no way I’m going to do two fights if I broke it. If that happened, thank you my God.”
Light heavyweight title could be up for grabs if Alex Pereira moves up to heavyweight
Alex Pereira has his sights set on a move to heavyweight, aiming for a showdown with Jon Jones at the White House in 2026.
That would obviously be a massive fight, but if ‘Poatan’ does not defend his light heavyweight belt before then, it would leave the top of that division on hold for quite some time.
Following the main event, Joe Rogan supported the idea of establishing a vacant title fight in the 205-pound category, should Pereira choose to move up.
- READ MORE: Sean Strickland highlights ideal opponent for return to pave way to fight Khamzat Chimaev
Carlos Ulberg and Jiri Prochazka are both coming off strong wins, so they could soon find themselves battling for the belt.
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