In a post about Alex Pereira and Daniel Cormier, Paulo Costa drops comment calling out veteran UFC middleweight

ESPN MMA recently brought into focus Daniel Cormier's comments regarding Alex Pereira's activities ahead of his clash with Magomed Ankalaev. Cormier was concerned with Pereira's international travel and interactions, implying that they could take away from his training schedule. In the midst of this, Paulo Costa seized the opportunity to make his presence felt.

In response to the criticism, Pereira posted an Instagram story to personally clarify the issues. He posted a video, depicting a grueling training session and wrote:

"Don't worry @dc_mma [Cormier] We're over here working"

Reacting to ESPN MMA's Instagram post on Cormier's remarks about Pereira, Costa took to the platform to call out veteran middleweight contender Jared Cannonier.

Below the comments section, Costa's remark renewed talk again of a potential fight between Costa and Cannonier, one which has been floated several times already but still hasn't materialized. He said:

"Jared."

Paulo Costa's comment on ESPN MMA's Instagram post, calling out Jared Connonier [Screenshot courtesy: @espnmma]

The history between Cannonier and Costa provides even more context to this callout. The two were initially supposed to face each other on August 21, 2021, however, Costa pulled out of the fight over contract issues and fighter pay disagreements. The two fighters have since indicated their willingness to rematch the fight, but circumstances have kept on stopping it from happening.

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Dana White refused to arrange Alex Pereira's desired matchup

UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira will next face Magomed Ankalaev in a high-stakes title defense at UFC 313 in Las Vegas. Despite the challenge coming up, Pereira is looking at a future fight.

Pereira has discussed his desire to face UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones in the ring. This much-hyped bout has generated a lot of buzz in the world of MMA since it would be pitting two of the sport's best competitors against each other.

However, UFC president Dana White has been reluctant to schedule a fight between Jones and Pereira. White had commented on being cautious of the extreme size difference between the two fighters, which would potentially make the fight less competitive in consideration of Jones' physical stature.

Addressing a question at a post-fight press conference at UFC 309, White said:

"There's no f------ way I make the [Jon Jones] vs Alex Pereira fight. Jon's too big."

He further added:

“[Jon is a] great wrestler. Did you see how he took Stipe down in that first round? I like Alex Pereira. I like him personally. It just doesn’t make sense to make that fight.”

Check out Dana White's comments below (29:50):