"DC didn't believe me" - When Joe Rogan predicted Alex Pereira's meteoric rise long before his UFC stardom

On Jan. 20, 2024, Joe Rogan joined his longtime friends Joey Diaz, Brendan Schaub, Eddie Bravo on the then latest edition of his podcast's Fight Companion series. During their four-hour conversation, they touched on the rise of UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.

As Rogan showered Pereira with praise for his stunning accomplishments in such little time, he also referenced the nonexistent faith others had in 'Poatan.' He was, after all, a career kickboxer at the time, who many believed would struggle with the wrestling and grappling aspects of MMA. Rogan, however, disagreed.

"Who the f*ck has ever won two world titles quicker than that guy? I mean, nobody, never. Never been done. Nobody's been a champ-champ quicker than that guy. Right now, just a few fights into his UFC career [and] he's a Hall of Famer, 100%."

Unfortunately, his fellow broadcast booth partner Daniel Cormier, a Hall of Famer and former two-division UFC champion, had doubts about how well Pereira would do at the top of the sport.

"Bro, I remember I was telling people about him before he entered the UFC. I was telling DC (Daniel Cormier). DC didn't believe me. He was like, 'Come on.' I go, 'Dude, you gotta listen to me. You gotta listen to me. This guy has that crazy power. He's got somethting weird, where he hits guys, they look confused.' I watched him beat everything."

Check out Joe Rogan praising Alex Pereira (49:15):

There's something to be said about Pereira's success. Not only has he now held championship belts in two UFC divisions, he has also beaten five former champions in Sean Strickland, Israel Adesanya, Jan Błachowicz, Jiří Procházka, and Jamahal Hill.

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Joe Rogan has campaigned for Alex Pereira to fight for the UFC heavyweight title

Alex Pereira is currently scheduled to face Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313, where he will defend his light heavyweight title. If he beats him, 'Poatan' could find himself in position to challenge for the heavyweight title, which Joe Rogan has been calling for, with even UFC CEO Dana White stressing it.

"It's a possibility. I mean, Rogan is pushing me right now to try and make that fight."

Check out Dana White mentioning Joe Rogan's campaign for Alex Pereira at heavyweight (16:16):

Jon Jones, who currently reigns as the undisputed heavyweight champion, expressed an interest in facing Pereira, as did the interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.