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Announced as UFC 300 headliner
Pereira will take on Jamahal Hill (Achilles) for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship in the main event of UFC 300 on April 13 in Las Vegas, UFC President Dana White reported via his personal X account.
ANALYSIS
Pereira, a former middleweight champion, moved up to light heavyweight last July and proceeded to defeat Jan Blachowicz before getting his title shot the following November, when he defeated Jiri Prochazka via second-round TKO. Of course, that title shot was only available because Jamahal Hill was forced to vacate the belt he won in January of 2023, as Hill suffered an Achilles injury that sidelined him for over a year. Now, a definitive champion will be crowned on the UFC's monumental card. Pereira should enter as the betting favorite in what will likely be a stand-up affair, as both fighters are high-volume strikers with little wrestling game to speak of. Pereira is the more technical of the two given his kickboxing history, but he'll still have to watch out for the power of Hill, who earned a 12-1 professional record en route to becoming champion.
Pereira, a former middleweight champion, moved up to light heavyweight last July and proceeded to defeat Jan Blachowicz before getting his title shot the following November, when he defeated Jiri Prochazka via second-round TKO. Of course, that title shot was only available because Jamahal Hill was forced to vacate the belt he won in January of 2023, as Hill suffered an Achilles injury that sidelined him for over a year. Now, a definitive champion will be crowned on the UFC's monumental card. Pereira should enter as the betting favorite in what will likely be a stand-up affair, as both fighters are high-volume strikers with little wrestling game to speak of. Pereira is the more technical of the two given his kickboxing history, but he'll still have to watch out for the power of Hill, who earned a 12-1 professional record en route to becoming champion.
New light heavyweight king
Pereira became the new UFC Light Heavyweight champion on Saturday, defeating Jiri Prochazka via KO (punches) at 4:08 of Round 2 at UFC 295 in New York City.
ANALYSIS
Pereira has 11 career professional fights under his belt, seven of which have come with the UFC. In that span, he has become a two-division champion and already defeated four men (Prochazka, Jan Blachowicz, Israel Adesanya, Sean Strickland) that are either current or former title holders. It's been a truly mind-blowing rise to the top for an elite talent. Alex set the tone here with plenty of leg kicks that left Prochazka hampered the entire bout. To Jiri's credit, he still managed to generate offense, led by a takedown in Round 1 and plenty of forward pressure in Round 2. Yet, Pereira stuck with it and eventually caught Prochazka with a shot along the fence. Some follow-up strikes forced Jiri to the mat and referee Marc Goddard quickly, perhaps too quickly, pulled the plug. That's not to take away from another brilliant effort from the Brazilian. Simply put, you don't see 36-year-old fighters do what Pereira is doing. Alex invited Adesanya to 205 pounds in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, before Rogan quickly -- and likely correctly -- pointed out that Jamahal Hill, who ruptured his Achilles in July and was forced to vacate the title, will be first in line. Hill has been on a roll of late, but Pereira is going to be a big favorite if/when that fight finally comes around. He'll also take home a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his efforts here.
Pereira has 11 career professional fights under his belt, seven of which have come with the UFC. In that span, he has become a two-division champion and already defeated four men (Prochazka, Jan Blachowicz, Israel Adesanya, Sean Strickland) that are either current or former title holders. It's been a truly mind-blowing rise to the top for an elite talent. Alex set the tone here with plenty of leg kicks that left Prochazka hampered the entire bout. To Jiri's credit, he still managed to generate offense, led by a takedown in Round 1 and plenty of forward pressure in Round 2. Yet, Pereira stuck with it and eventually caught Prochazka with a shot along the fence. Some follow-up strikes forced Jiri to the mat and referee Marc Goddard quickly, perhaps too quickly, pulled the plug. That's not to take away from another brilliant effort from the Brazilian. Simply put, you don't see 36-year-old fighters do what Pereira is doing. Alex invited Adesanya to 205 pounds in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, before Rogan quickly -- and likely correctly -- pointed out that Jamahal Hill, who ruptured his Achilles in July and was forced to vacate the title, will be first in line. Hill has been on a roll of late, but Pereira is going to be a big favorite if/when that fight finally comes around. He'll also take home a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his efforts here.
Booked as UFC 295 co-main event
Pereira will face Jiri Prochazka on Nov. 11 at UFC 295 in New York in a light heavyweight title fight, Aaron Bronsteter of TSN.ca reports.
ANALYSIS
Pereira is fresh off a split-decision victory over Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291 in July and will face off against Prochazka, who hasn't fought in a year after sustaining a severe shoulder injury.
Pereira is fresh off a split-decision victory over Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291 in July and will face off against Prochazka, who hasn't fought in a year after sustaining a severe shoulder injury.
Huge win in 205-pound debut
Pereira defeated Jan Blachowicz via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) at UFC 291 on Saturday in Salt Lake City.
ANALYSIS
This was a pick 'em when the fight began, proving once again that Vegas knows all. In many ways, it played out as expected. Making his light heavyweight debut, Pereira was the far more dangerous man in the stand-up. He wisely leaned on leg kicks to slow Jan down. Alex's issues came in the grappling department. He allowed Blachowicz to land one takedown in each frame, but to Pereira's credit, Round 1 was the only stanza in which he found himself in real trouble, fighting off multiple deep submission attempts. The big surprise of the bout was the fact Alex had the better cardio. It's a great win, but it was far from a dominating performance, and Pereira's grappling defense remains a question mark. He's almost certainly going to fight for the now-vacant 205-pound championship with the win, however.
This was a pick 'em when the fight began, proving once again that Vegas knows all. In many ways, it played out as expected. Making his light heavyweight debut, Pereira was the far more dangerous man in the stand-up. He wisely leaned on leg kicks to slow Jan down. Alex's issues came in the grappling department. He allowed Blachowicz to land one takedown in each frame, but to Pereira's credit, Round 1 was the only stanza in which he found himself in real trouble, fighting off multiple deep submission attempts. The big surprise of the bout was the fact Alex had the better cardio. It's a great win, but it was far from a dominating performance, and Pereira's grappling defense remains a question mark. He's almost certainly going to fight for the now-vacant 205-pound championship with the win, however.
Next fight scheduled
Pereira will take on Jan Blachowicz in a light heavyweight matchup at UFC 291 on July 29 in Salt Lake City, Shaheed Al-Shatti of MMA Fighting.com reports Tuesday.
ANALYSIS
Pereira is coming off a tough loss to Israel Adesanya in the second round at UFC 287. He'll look to right the ship by moving up a weight class and facing Jan Blachowicz, who drew with Magomed Ankalaev in his last contest. Pereira had a four-fight winning streak in UFC bouts up to the Adesanya loss, while Blachowicz has only lost three times in the last six years. For Pereira, it was always a noticeably difficult cut to 185 pounds, and he was always considered huge for the middleweight division. He should be a fresher fighter with a lesser weight cut, though he faces a new level of power against a former champion in Blachowicz.
Pereira is coming off a tough loss to Israel Adesanya in the second round at UFC 287. He'll look to right the ship by moving up a weight class and facing Jan Blachowicz, who drew with Magomed Ankalaev in his last contest. Pereira had a four-fight winning streak in UFC bouts up to the Adesanya loss, while Blachowicz has only lost three times in the last six years. For Pereira, it was always a noticeably difficult cut to 185 pounds, and he was always considered huge for the middleweight division. He should be a fresher fighter with a lesser weight cut, though he faces a new level of power against a former champion in Blachowicz.