Alex “Poatan” Pereira’s arrival in the UFC’s middleweight division was compounded by the knowledge that he handed Israel Adesanya his last two losses as a kickboxer. Pereira is set to fight Sean Strickland on the same night as Adesanya defends his title against Jared Cannonier, and the Brazilian knockout artist appeared on the Trocação Franca podcast with a surprising prediction.
“Honestly, I’m not thinking about a knockout.
Alex Pereira Seeks Dominant Decision Win over Sean Strickland
If it’s a fight [that ends] by decision, winning clearly, I’d prefer it. I want feel [the fight], you know? Just like the [Bruno Santos] fight — three rounds, a war, him trying to take me down and myself defending it. If I get taken down, I’m getting back up and maybe taking him down as well.”
Pereira was a two-division champion back in his GLORY kickboxing days, with a 2-0 record in the UFC so far. A third straight win over Strickland could well put him in title contention, considering his longstanding rivalry with the reigning middleweight champ, Israel “The Last Stylebender” Adesanya.
“I don’t know what will happen.
People have been asking for the Adesanya fight and the title fight ever since I signed [with the UFC]. I came in saying I wanted to fight for the belt against whoever held it, and he’s there. I don’t know how it’s going to be, but I’ll be ready for one, two, three, how many more fights the organization wants me to take. But we can see it’s being a quick process. I’m ready [now].”
Right now, though, he’s focused on Sean Strickland.
“He’s a dangerous guy, very tough. But, with my fighting style, I think it’s a great fight for me. He comes forward willing to engage, you know? He wants to win. That motivates me a lot. I think my technique could be better than his.
I see many openings in his game. There are so many things I can do there. Even that fight he lost to the Brazilian with a spinning kick, he’s getting a lot of experience since. Maybe it wasn’t just that he moved up in weight, I think he’s evolving. Six fights [since then] is a lot, you know?”
“Poatan” made serious waves upon his UFC debut with a flying knee knockout. His striking pedigree, like Adesanya’s, speaks for itself. Curiously for the modern MMA landscape, Pereira only has a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Considering that Sean Strickland’s fighting style of late has revolved around high-pressure wrestling, this could present a challenge.
What’s your prediction for Strickland vs Pereira? Let us know in the comments.
