'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
This weekend at UFC 303, Alex Pereira will defend his light heavyweight title against Jiri Prochazka. If he wins, it will be his second successful title defense.
Despite only debuting in the octagon in 2021, it's arguable that Alex Pereira is already a UFC legend. Before his career ends, though, he could rise even higher on the totem pole.
Given his accomplishments and abilities, could 'Poatan' go down as the greatest of all time? It's not outside the realm of possibility.
Here are three reasons why Alex Pereira is already a UFC legend - and 2 ways he could extend his reputation even further.
Trending
#3. Alex Pereira is the best kickboxing crossover in UFC history
The UFC is not only the pinnacle of MMA, but it's arguable that the promotion represents the absolute peak of any combat sport.
Because of this, we've seen numerous fighters from other combat sports cross over into the octagon, whether they've come from amateur wrestling, boxing or kickboxing.
The latter sport has sent plenty of talented fighters over into the UFC since its earliest days, and some of them have found plenty of success. However, it's probably undeniable now that Alex Pereira is the best kickboxing crossover in UFC history.
'Poatan' built a monstrous reputation for himself in the kickboxing ring, putting together an impressive record of 33-7 during his time in the sport.
He not only won the GLORY middleweight title, but he also defended it successfully on five occasions and claimed the promotion's light heavyweight title too.
The UFC has seen other decorated kickboxers compete in the octagon, including legends like Gokhan Saki, Mirko Cro Cop, and Mark Hunt. Unlike those fighters, though, who struggled in MMA at times, Alex Pereira has thrived.
The Brazilian has done what even K-1 champ Alistair Overeem - who started his fighting career in MMA - was unable to do. He's claimed UFC gold in two different weight classes.
Essentially, if Henry Cejudo can claim to be the greatest combat sports athlete of all time thanks to his status as an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling and two UFC title wins, 'Poatan' has the credentials to rival that claim.
Based on this, he's got to go down as a UFC legend.
#2. Alex Pereira is a fighter's fighter
Every fighter who initially debuts in the UFC is wildly hungry for success. This often leads them to take risks with their career, most notably by taking late-notice fights against any opponent at any time.
Usually, as a fighter climbs the ladder, that changes. The closer a fighter gets to the top, the more valuable each win becomes, and risking a winning streak to bail out the promotion often seems like a bad decision.
This usually magnifies even further if a fighter becomes a UFC champion and a big star. At that stage, some champions have clearly attempted to hand-pick their opponents in order to keep hold of their crown.
That accusation cannot be leveled at Alex Pereira, though. 'Poatan', to put it bluntly, is still a fighter's fighter despite all of his success.
Since arriving in the UFC in November 2021 - less than three years ago - he's already fought eight times, making this weekend his ninth octagon appearance.
Five of those fights have been five-round title bouts, and this weekend will mark the second time he's taken a major headline fight on relatively late notice in 2024 alone.
Compared to some other UFC champions - even a handful of current ones - the Brazilian is an outlier. His "anyone at any time" attitude will only endear him to both the promotion and the fans.
More to the point, even if this ends up changing as time goes on, what he's done already means he's a UFC legend.
#1. Alex Pereira is a UFC double champion
The biggest factor making Alex Pereira a legend of the UFC already is the fact that he's one of just a handful of fighters to become a double champion.
'Poatan' is not amongst the fighters to simultaneously hold titles in different weight classes. Only four fighters have managed that: Conor McGregor, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, and Henry Cejudo.
However, by winning the middleweight title and later the light heavyweight title, Pereira has been able to equal the feat of other greats like Jon Jones, B.J. Penn, and Georges St-Pierre.
Where does he sit in the pantheon of double champions? In all honesty, probably not that highly, as he was unable to defend his 185-pound title successfully.
Despite this, 'Poatan' did at least earn his shot at the 205-pound crown by successfully beating a former champ in Jan Blachowicz. He wasn't handed his shot like Jones at heavyweight and St-Pierre at middleweight.
Moreover, the fact that he has already achieved what other great champions like Israel Adesanya and T.J. Dillashaw were unable to do puts him up there with the all-time greats.
Alex Pereira could already be considered a legend of the octagon. However, if he could achieve the following two feats, his reputation would be enhanced immeasurably.
#2. Alex Pereira needs to defeat a stylistically difficult opponent
Currently, Alex Pereira's UFC record stands at an impressive 7-1. The only loss he's suffered came at the hands of his great rival Israel Adesanya in April 2023.
Despite this fantastic record, though, it's arguable that the one knock that a critic could have on 'Poatan' is the nature of his opponents.
Only a fool would try to claim that the Brazilian has fought weak foes. In fact, five of his seven octagon wins have come over former UFC champions. However, there is an argument to suggest that Pereira has only ever fought stylistically good opposition, even though he's faced great fighters.
He'd already beaten Adesanya in the kickboxing ring, so it was hardly too surprising that he repeated the feat in the octagon. Sean Strickland, Jan Blachowicz, Jiri Prochazka, and Jamahal Hill, meanwhile, all prefer to stand with their foes for the most part, an approach that plays directly into Pereira's hands.
With that considered, it'd enhance the Brazilian's reputation hugely if he were able to knock off an opponent considered by some to be his stylistic kryptonite. That's something that Anderson Silva, for example, did on plenty of occasions, adding to his own legend.
Pereira may have the opportunity to do just that if he faces powerful wrestler Magomed Ankalaev in the near future. If 'Poatan' could dispatch the Dagestani in devastating fashion, his greatness would be impossible to deny.
#1. Alex Pereira could try to claim gold at heavyweight
While Alex Pereira achieved a monumental feat by claiming UFC gold at light heavyweight to go along with his middleweight title win, he wasn't the promotion's first double champ.
That mantle, unsurprisingly, belongs to Randy Couture, who achieved it two decades before 'Poatan'. In the period of time between, a number of other fighters have also become double champs.
One thing that no fighter has been able to do, though, is hold a UFC title in three different weight classes. Given the logistics of this, it's practically impossible.
For Alex Pereira, though, that might not be the case. Quite how the hulking 'Poatan' ever made 185 pounds is a mystery, but the fact is that right now, he's hardly a small 205-pounder.
In fact, it's been suggested that Pereira weighs upwards of 230 pounds during his training camps - a figure that would put him firmly at heavyweight if he avoided any weight cutting.
If 'Poatan' could add a little more muscle to his frame, then, there'd be no reason why he couldn't compete at heavyweight. And given the flux in that division right now, with question marks around champ Jon Jones, the idea of the Brazilian claiming the title there isn't impossible.
If he could do that, then it'd be arguable that 'Poatan' should be considered the greatest of all time. Therefore, this has to be his ultimate aim.
