All on the line for Alex Pereira at UFC 300
Alex Pereira has punched his way to the biggest fight of his career on the biggest stage. With champion after champion lying unconscious on the canvas as he walks off, Poatan has found himself headlining the biggest card in UFC history: UFC 300.
Having fought for four belts in two sports and two weight classes during his career, Pereira has never fought on a bigger stage than he will this weekend. When he stares down Jamahal Hill as Bruce Buffer announces both fighters, Pereira will be facing off with his sixth straight world champion. It’s safe to say so much is on the line this weekend.
Alex Pereira: A meteoric rise to fame
Alex Pereira’s rise to fame stems from his four fights with former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. Without Adesanya, there really is no Pereira, at least as we know him. Not only driving Pereira to be better, Israel Adesanya’s fame has been what facilitated Pereira’s rise to stardom.
Pereira is only 9-2 in mixed martial arts. He doesn’t speak English fluently and uses a translator to talk to the English-speaking world. Yet he has 2.5 million followers on Instagram. It’s safe to say he is massively famous worldwide and a needle mover.
When signed to the UFC, many questioned if he was actually going to pan out with his lack of MMA experience. After his fight with Bruno Silva, where he failed to knock out his fellow Brazilian, many were smug with an “I told you so” mentality.
Upping the ante even further, Pereira proved the doubters wrong by beating Jan Blachowicz and Jiri Prochazka at 205 and captured a second weight world title.
Everything is on the line for Alex Pereira at UFC 300. The stakes have never been higher.
The Jamahal Hill problem
As Alex Pereira stares across the cage at Jamahal Hill with his stony, emotionless face, he will be taking on the next challenge of his career.
Hill is the next phase in Pereira’s storied career. In kickboxing, he’s faced the best of the best. Simon Marcus, Jason Wilnis, and more fell before him in kickboxing. Sean Strickland, Israel Adesanya and Jiri Prochazka we’re his victims in MMA.
Pereira is continuing his Glover Teixeira revenge tour and beating Prochazka and Hill, two of the three men that ripped the title away from his Brazilian teammate. With Jon Jones out of the picture, it’s apparent that the challenge for Pereira lies in how far he can fly, how close he can get to the sun before his wings melt like Icarus.
Tom Aspinall is too heavy. Instead, I believe Alex Pereira’s final challenge lurks in one more revenge plot.
Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya 5
If and after he avenges Texiera against Hill at UFC 300, an old foe may re-emerge. As talked about repeatedly, Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya is the most storied rivalry across multiple combat sports. Pereira knocked Adesanya out once in kickboxing and once in MMA, ending Adesanya’s reign.
To return the favor, Adesanya finally snagged a win over Pereira with his knockout at UFC 287. Now, if we’re being technical, the score is 1-1 in MMA. An argument is very easily made for a fifth/third fight.
Adesanya has tried for a second world title in the past. He aimed for a legendary fight with Jon Jones at 205 for years but was not given the time of day by “Bones.” When Adesanya moved up, he faced, and lost to, Jan Blachowicz.
Adesanya has said he’d like a second crack at the top. Who better to take that second shot at than an old rival to settle the score? Adesanya is rumored to face Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 in August, which is only 5 months away. If he wins that, a move north could be a possibility.
Of course, Alex Pereira has to be a champion to make this massive money fight a reality. Jamahal Hill is no easy task. He’s a heavy hitter who swears he can wrestle. With a major money fight with pay per view points unlike anything Pereira has ever seen, at UFC 300, and a weight class up, the pressure is on for Alex Pereira.
