"I thought they were getting married" - Fans show concern as Alex Pereira unfollows girlfriend Merle on Instagram and deletes all pictures with her 

Alex Pereira recently unfollowed his partner Merle on social media and deleted all posts of them together. The UFC light heavyweight champion's activity was quite concerning to his fans, and many expressed their reactions online.

Over the past two years, 'Poatan' has established himself as one of the most popular stars in the UFC and a fan-favorite fighter. The Brazilian notably defeated Israel Adesanya to win the middleweight title at UFC 281. After Adesanya reclaimed the belt in their rematch, Pereira moved up to the light heavyweight division and won the 205-pound strap against Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295.

While Pereira's striking skills are a sight to behold, he's also known for his sense of humor and often leans into character as a stone-faced stoic for funny posts on social media. 'Poatan' often posted funny content with Merle, and fans saw the two as a solid pairing. However, not much was known about their private life.

An X handle, @uhvaimorre, recently posted that Pereira's partner unfollowed him on Instagram and reported that the Brazilian has been posting heartbreak music on the platform ever since.

While there's no indication from either of them that there's trouble in their relationship, fans were highly concerned and flocked to the post's comments section to express their thoughts.

One fan wrote:

"Wtf, I thought they were getting married."

Another fan wrote:

"She doesn't deserve 'Poatan'."

Check out some more reactions below:

Screenshots from @uhvaimorre on X

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Alex Pereira on potentially moving up a weight class to compete as a heavyweight

'Poatan' won't be fighting heavyweight opponents just yet. The Brazilian recently weighed in on the speculation surrounding his move up to the heavyweight division.

Last week, 'Poatan' posted a cryptic message on Instagram, sending MMA fans into a frenzy. He wrote "30 + 300 = 3" in an Instagram story, which led many to speculate that the 205-pound kingpin was hinting at potentially gaining 30 pounds to fight at the momentous UFC 300 event for a third title at heavyweight.

In a recent interview on TheMacLife, Pereira addressed the mysterious post and said that it didn't mean what fans thought. It appears the message appeared to him in a dream, and he simply didn't know what to make of it. He said:

"I had a dream, it was 30 plus 300 is equal to three, and I got confused about all those numbers. I tossed it on there to see if people could help figure out the equation." [via translator]

Catch Alex Pereira's comments below (1:30):