"In my ear the whole time" - When Dana White revealed what Joe Rogan whispered to him after Alex Pereira's unmatched dominance at UFC 303

Dana White once disclosed a behind-the-scenes moment with Joe Rogan after Alex Pereira’s dominant victory at UFC 303 last year.

Speaking at the post-fight press conference, the UFC CEO revealed that Rogan was pushing for Pereira to move up to heavyweight following his spectacular performance:

"I'm standing up there with the belt and I had Joe Rogan in my ear the whole time we were up there, 'Let [Alex Pereira] fight at heavyweight. Come on! Just do it!' So, I know that's what people wanna see. We'll see how this whole thing plays out."

Check out Dana White's comments below:

At UFC 303, Pereira defended his light heavyweight title against Jiri Prochazka in Las Vegas. The Brazilian floored Prochazka in the first round, but the Czech fighter was saved by the bell. In the second, Pereira sealed the victory with a devastating head kick and follow-up strikes, earning a TKO win and a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.

Pereira went on to beat Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307 via fourth-round knockout, setting a UFC record for the shortest time (175 days) to three title defenses. However, his reign ended at UFC 313 when Magomed Ankalaev defeated him by unanimous decision.

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Joe Rogan analyzes Alex Pereira’s UFC 313 loss to Magomed Ankalaev

Joe Rogan recently shared his thoughts on Alex Pereira’s performance at UFC 313 while discussing the fight with Daniel Cormier and Jon Anik. Rogan pointed out that Pereira, known for his knockout power, struggled to take control and was forced to fight off the back foot against Magomed Ankalaev.

Speaking on ESPN MMA’s post-fight analysis, Rogan praised Ankalaev’s approach, noting his growth since his UFC debut loss to Paul Craig:

''In his UFC debut, Ankalaev got caught by Paul Craig in a fight that he was winning... Now he’s the UFC light-heavyweight champion of the world against the most devastating champion we’ve seen in the UFC for years. It’s really an impressive performance by Ankalaev. He did everything he had to do and showed that Pereira has a harder time fighting off the back foot. He did what had to be done.”

Rogan added that Pereira had only a few moments of success, including a head kick and some clean shots, but was largely on the defensive:

''There were really only a couple of moments where Pereira stunned him. There was the head kick, there were a couple of other moments where he caught him with good shots. But mostly Ankalaev was controlling the distance, putting the pressure on him. So we saw ‘Poatan’ fight in what up to now was an uncharacteristic position, backing up and avoiding shots.”

Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (0:04):