Having fought thrice in 2024, Alex Pereira already has return date in mind

Alex Pereira was able to defend his light heavyweight title for the third time in 2024 when he defeated Khalil Rountree Jr. via fourth-round TKO at UFC 307 earlier this month. 'Poatan' recently revealed that he is hoping to return as soon as March after completing obligations outside of the octagon, while also sharing his thoughts on his next opponent.

Speaking to Ariel Helwani on his show, the light heavyweight champion stated, via his translator and coach Plinio Cruz:

"Ideally, he would fight around June, it would be ideal, but he would maybe like to fight around March, even, but honestly, say, if it were up to him, he'll fight in December right now. But the problem is these two fights happened too soon and we had a lot of appearances, a lot of trips, a lot of business to do and we had to push them for after these two fights because they were scheduled for before. The guys who organized it understood, but we have some obligations to do so he feels that around March is a good date."

When asked who Pereira would choose as his next opponent, he added:

"I'm going to be honest, man, I don't have nobody in my mind. The organization came with Khalil last time and it was a surprise for me, too. I don't really choose opponents. Some people say [Magomed] Ankalaev, but I'm going to be honest with you, him and his manager have been talking a lot of crap saying that Alex doesn't want to fight, but the reality is the organization doesn't want him to fight because he's boring."

Check out Alex Pereira's comments on when he plans to return to the octagon below (17:05):

Pereira added that fans do not like to watch Ankalaev fight and he doesn't sell pay-per-views. He claimed that the No. 2-ranked light heavyweight's camp has been disrespectful by alleging he is avoiding the matchup. 'Poatan' hinted that he could make it even more difficult for the bout to come to fruition.

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Alex Pereira discusses rivalry with Israel Adesanya

Alex Pereira has shared a rivalry with Israel Adesanya that has been among the greatest in recent combat sports history. With both fighters now expressing that the rivalry is behind them, 'Poatan' expressed that he is happy things stayed in the ring during a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, stating, via his translator and coach Plinio Cruz:

"I think it was a real nice thing that he did. I have a lot of respect in the fact that the rivalry stayed in the ring. You know what I mean? We're waving that off. And I like the way that he said that [he's] cheering for me and saying that he's the only guy that ever beat me. In his place, I would have done the same. I want to be the only guy that beats somebody so I think it was very nice and I like that a lot."

Check out Alex Pereira's comments on Israel Adesanya below:

Pereira's rivalry with Adesanya predates both of their time in the UFC as it dates back to their respective kickboxing careers. The two shared the octagon twice with the middleweight title on the line, with each fighter picking up a finish against the other.