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Very few athletes in mixed martial arts can boast a journey as remarkable as Alex “Poatan” Pereira’s. From a multiple-division kickboxing champion to becoming a two-division champion in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, despite only eight fights under the promotion’s banner.  

Pereira’s story is one of resilience, adaptability, and unwavering determination. This article will go over the inspiring combat sports career of UFC Light Heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, exploring the pivotal moments that have shaped him into the MMA phenom he is today.

The Early Days: A Kickboxing Prodigy

Alex Pereira was born on July 7, 1987, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He grew up in one of Brazil’s infamous favelas and dropped out of middle school to work as a bricklayer’s assistant. Pereira’s journey into the world of kickboxing started as a way for him to kick a drinking problem he had picked up from his work associates.  He started honing his striking skills in a gym not far from his home in 2009, but little did he know superstardom was on the horizon. 

Four years later, Pereira started taking amateur kickboxing matches, going 2-1 before deciding to turn pro. He won the Brazilian 187 lbs Championship in his first professional fight against Clei Silva and went on to win a couple more belts before transitioning to Glory. He won the promotion’s middleweight title during his second outing and went on to defend the belt five times. One of his most notable wins during his Glory run was his victories against fellow kickboxing star Israel Adesanya. Little did either man know they would end up being rivals in a different sport. 

Kickboxing Success: Rise To Prominence

Pereira’s breakout moment came when he joined Glory Kickboxing, one of the premier kickboxing organizations in the world. His power-packed punches and devastating kicks quickly made him a fan favorite. He won the Glory Middleweight Championship twice, showcasing his dominance in the kickboxing realm.

A Unique Style: Striking Excellence

What set Pereira apart from many other kickboxers was his ability to mix traditional kickboxing techniques with a unique flair. His striking excellence was marked by precise timing, knockout power, and an unrelenting pursuit of victory. Pereira’s memorable knockouts were the stuff of highlight reels, and he established himself as one of the most feared middleweights in the sport.

Pereira went on to win Glory’s light-heavyweight title as well, becoming the first fighter in the promotions to hold the middleweight and heavyweight titles simultaneously. 

The Transition: Embracing MMA

Pereira made the bold decision to transition from kickboxing to MMA in 2015, losing his first fight via rear-naked choke. The allure of new challenges and the opportunity to test his skills in the cage were irresistible, especially given the success his rival Israel Adesanya was enjoying inside the cage. Despite his immense success in kickboxing, the switch to MMA was no easy task.

Training And Adaptation

Pereira understood that succeeding in MMA required a different skill set. He committed himself to rigorous training circled around Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and wrestling. The transition from the striking-focused world of kickboxing to the multifaceted realm of MMA was a daunting one, but Pereira was determined to make it work.

Pereira made his MMA debut under the banner of Jungle Fights, a prominent MMA organization based in Brazil. His debut fight was met with great anticipation, but he didn’t get the results he had hoped for. Defeated but not broken, Pereira went on to knock out his next four opponents. His striking prowess was evident, and his string of victories earned him a spot on the UFC’s roster. 

Instant Impact

The MMA world took notice of Pereira’s instant impact in the UFC. His striking pedigree allowed him to stand out in the cage, and it was clear that he was more than just a kickboxer testing the waters. He was a legitimate threat to the established contenders in the division.

Pereira won three consecutive fights in the UFC, defeating former middleweight champion Sean Strickland, who was a top contender then, on his way to a title shot against Adesanya. 

The hype was at an all-time high when the two kickboxing standouts met inside the cage, with both fighters showcasing their well-rounded MMA skills, landing takedowns on each other. Alex was down on the scorecards heading into the fifth round, but he pulled off the comeback victory by finishing Adesanya in the fifth. 

The Highly Anticipated Rematch

Pereira’s win against Adesanya earned him the middleweight title and set the stage for a rematch between the two rivals. They met for the second time inside the cage at UFC 287 and it was Adesanya who got the better of the exchanges this time around, knocking Pereira out cold during the second round, bringing their rivalry to 1-1 in mixed martial arts. 

Alex shook the loss off without missing a beat and made his 205 lbs debut against former light-heavyweight champion Jan Błachowicz, winning via split decision. He went on to defeat Jiří Procházka for the belt at UFC 295, at the same Arena he defeated Adesanya to win the middleweight title. 

Moments after the fight, Pereira called out Adesanya, challenging him to fight for the light-heavyweight title. Interestingly enough, the callout wasn’t because of any bad blood between the two. Adesanya had recently expressed his intent to walk away from MMA for a few years, but Alex believes he simply needs an opponent who motivates him to compete. 

More recently, Pereira headlined UFC 300 and defeated top contender Jamahal Hill in the first round by KO, retaining the belt and further cementing his status as one of the promotion’s top stars.

A Remarkable Journey

Alex Pereira’s journey from kickboxing champion to emerging MMA phenom is a testament to his dedication, adaptability, and raw talent. His ability to transition seamlessly from one combat sport to another has captivated the imagination of fight fans worldwide. 

Pereira stands as a symbol of what can be achieved through unwavering determination and a relentless pursuit of greatness as he earned his rank as one of the most inspiring fighters in MMA history. 

Pereira’s journey is a perfect showcase of what martial arts are meant to represent. He’s had to deal with lots of adversity, like getting choked out during his first MMA fight and losing his first UFC title defense against Adesanya, but he always perseveres and accomplishes his goals. 

There’s no flash or gimmicks with Alex Pereira, just a stoic man who has tons of quiet confidence in himself and a solid understanding of the fundamentals of fighting. 

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Jack Catterall avenged his prior defeat to Josh Taylor by unanimous decision on Saturday, but for a moment, it looked like promoter Bob Arum might try to throw a few punches himself.

In a fight that most experts believed played out in two halves with Catterall starting strong and Taylor winning the later rounds, there was no controversy once the scorecards were announced. The final scores tallied 117-111, 117-111 and 116-113 with Catterall scoring the unanimous decision win over 12 grueling rounds.

Following the conclusion of the fight, Arum grabbed the microphone from fellow promoter Eddie Hearn and erupted about the result.

“I saw the fight like everybody else,” Arum shouted. “Those scorecards were a disgrace, they were an absolutely disgrace. I really feel sorry for Josh. I thought he won the fight. Those scorecards were ridiculous.

“That’s a lesson. I never ever allow an American fighter to come here with this British born scoring the fight. Those scores were ridiculous.”

The win served as Catterall’s revenge after he fell to Taylor back in 2022, which serves as the only defeat on his resume. As for Taylor, he dropped his second fight in a row after losing his WBO and Ring light welterweight titles to Teofimo Lopez via unanimous decision this past June.

As for Hearn, who was there supporting Catterall, he agreed with Arum that the scorecards should have been much closer but he ultimately believes the right fighter won.

“Bob’s seen a lot of fights,” Hearn said. “I agree with him — I think the cards were much too wide. But I have absolutely no doubt Jack Catterall won that fight. Justice was served tonight.”

As for Catterall, he was mostly disappointed that the belts were no longer on the line after Taylor lost his titles to Lopez in 2023. There’s always a chance these two see each other again in a trilogy but for now it appears Catterall is anxious to test himself against some new competition.

“Listen, I believe I won the fight,” Catterall said. “I took more risks this time. Josh is an elite operator, undisputed world champion, we knew what we was up against. I felt like through the gears, boxed smart and even in the second half of the fight, I felt like I was more reserved, I was controlling the place and I wasn’t getting hit with big punches. I was landing clean.

“It’s bittersweet tonight. No world titles. I won that fight. We can close that chapter with Josh Taylor.”

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Ex-NFL star Le’Veon Bell picked up another win in his fledgling boxing career after he earned a unanimous decision over Tristan Hamm at Misfits Boxing 15.

Flanked by former teammate and friend Antonio Brown as he entered the ring, Bell had to survive an early scare after Hamm blasted him with a huge left hand in an early exchange that had him in trouble. To his credit, Bell composed himself and then stormed back to dish out a lot of punishment with Hamm fading with each passing minute.

In the end, Bell got the nod with the judges scoring the contest 49-45, 48-46, 50-44 after five hard fought rounds. The win moves Bell forward to the semifinals of the ongoing Misfits cruiserweight tournament.

“This dude right here’s a f*cking soldier,” Bell said about Hamm after his win. “To be honest, today was another learning curve for me. There’s no ceiling for me, I’m just going to keep getting better. I feel like I just fought the best guy in the tournament other than myself. If you win, you’re going to have to see me.”

It was Hamm who landed the first big punch in the fight after he blasted Bell with a huge left hook that put the ex-NFL star on wobbly legs. Hamm immediately started talking trash rather than following up with a combination to mount some further damage on Bell.

By the end of the opening round, Bell had recovered and he started using his size and reach to hammer down on Hamm while also muscling him around in the clinch. With Hamm slowing down, Bell made him pay, especially with a well-timed straight right that landed clean from the outside.

It wasn’t until late in the second when Hamm finally started trading shots with Bell after he snapped off several nasty uppercuts as the fighters jockeyed for position on the inside.

With Bell remaining in control, he swung heavy in an exchange where Hamm actually went down to his knees in what looked like a slip. Instead, the referee administered the 10 count for a knockdown but Hamm didn’t complain so he either actually got hurt or he just welcomed the extra time to recover as him labored movement continued to haunt him.

Replays showed a punch from Bell did glance off Hamm’s temple just before he hit the canvas momentarily.

As the fourth round started, Hamm was still stuck on his back foot with Bell in hot pursuit, tossing out a left jab and then following with a power right behind it.

Urging from his corner had Hamm finally starting to get a little busier but he was resigned to leaning back against the ropes or conceding to the corner with Bell bullying him around the ring. Bell wasn’t exactly going for the kill either but he was comfortably ahead on the scorecards so he just had to ensure he didn’t do anything stupid to cost him the fight.

Bell has definitely endured some growing pains in his boxing career, which included a one-sided loss to retired UFC fighter Uriah Hall, but he’s now won two fights in a row including his latest in Misfits. He’ll now look forward to the next round of the cruiserweight tournament with hopes that a championship could be in his future.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Snake Charmer
| BJPenn.com

Paige VanZant made her return to action after nearly three years on the sidelines — all while dedicating that time to boxing training — to face Elle Brooke in the main event of Misfits 15 in Houston, Texas.

And while many expected “12 Gauge” to have the upper hand against Brooke in the boxing match, it didn’t exactly pan out that way. In the very first round, Brooke was content with working her jab, with VanZant was a bit more aggressive trying to pop off some combinations. But the biggest punch of the round was when Brooke clipped the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star with a right hooked that dropped her.

After shaking off the cobwebs, VanZant was the aggressor, but she didn’t exactly have the power in her punches to do much to Brooke. And that was the story of the fight, both ladies had some shining moments but one never really pulled away to convince the judges they had done enough to win the fight. In the end, the bout was scored a split-draw.

Check out some of the highlights below:

VanZant has not had her hand raised in victory in her last three fights, with two losses coming under the Bareknuckle FC banner. The two ladies have stated they’d be open to to the rematch to settle the score, and since it was a fun little brawl I wouldn’t be too surprised to see them run it back before the year is over.

To checkout the latest and greatest boxing news and notes be sure to hit up our archive here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

This is the Misfits Boxing 15 live blog for Elle Brooke vs. Paige VanZant, the main event boxing match going down on Saturday at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.

Known primarily as an influencer and internet personality, Brooke quietly became one of the more successful female influencer boxers during the sports’ rise over the past few years. Sporting a 4-1 record across various influencer platforms, Brooke scored the biggest win of her career in January when she knocked out Andrea-Jane Bunker to claim the Misfits Boxing middleweight title, which she now puts on the line against VanZant.

VanZant first rose to prominence in the UFC, joining the promotion in 2014 and rattling of three straight wins to become a legitimate prospect in the strawweight division. VanZant struggled to build off that early momentum though, going just 2-4 in her remaining time in the UFC before leaving the promotion in 2020 to pursue other interests. Since then, VanZant’s combat sports journey has primarily been in bareknuckle boxing where she went 0-2 under the BKFC banner, but now she makes the jump to the sweet science, where she has an immediate opportunity to become one of the faces of Misfits Boxing.

Check out the live blog for this middleweight title fight below.

Prefight: I’m going to level with you: this has not been a good night of fights so far. Six fights down, six decisions, and not a lot of good action. Thus far the most interesting thing that’s happened is Antonio Brown randomly showing up to walk Le’Veon Bell to the ring.

But now we’re to the main event. Will it be good? Questionable. PVZ hasn’t won a fight in five years and Elle Brooke is not amazing. But PVZ is a scrapper so at least there’s a high likelihood of something fun, if nothing else.

Walkouts: PVZ walks out to something latin and cool. She’s singing and looks in good spirits, rocking black shorts and a black top. She also has a huge back tattoo that I don’t remember seeing before.

Brooke is in blue and red shorts with a white top as she dances her way to the ring. Notably, I don’t see her middleweight title. It’s almost go time.

The announcer goes to work. James Green is the referee. The two women meet for a final face off and they do touch gloves. Let’s get to it.

Round 1: Both women are out in orthodox and Brooke takes the center to start. PVZ bouncing around the outside. Brooke lands a jab and PVZ returns with a combination of hooks. And that happens again. And again. PVZ is throwing in bunches and Brooke is sticking the jab.

Brooke sticks the jab again but lands a hook at the end of PVZ’s combo. They’re getting in thre and exchanging. Brooke snaps PVZ’s head with another hook but she eats it well. PVZ stays on her but she doesn’t seem to have enough pop to hurt Brooke, at least thus far.

OH! Right hook drops PVZ! They’re exchanging inside and Brooke found a short shot in the middle that landed clean. PVZ beats the count and Brooke jumps on her but it’s only two-minute rounds so PVZ makes it to the break.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-8 Brooke.

Round 2: PVZ’s corner talks her through it during the break and she comes out with a different gameplan as she starts jabbing immediately. Brooke still throwing limited punches but she’s staying tight inside.

PVZ sits on a combo but she lacks power in there. Brooke trying to land the big right hand and OH! PVZ lands a thunderous combo that gets Brooke’s attention. Brooke clinching in there now, trying to recover as PVZ cracked her. PVZ pouring on volume and Brooke sitting on bigger shots but PVZ is taking those shots well now. This is turning into a fun little brawl.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 VanZant, 19-18 Brooke overall.

Round 3: PVZ is the one on the lead now. She’s coming forward and bringing the pressure to Brooke. Brooke throwing single jabs and then big right power shots to back her off. PVZ is slipping those more though and she’s working in combination, behind a lead jab. Brooke tags the body and Brooke may be slowing down a bit. PVZ is not.

Brooke is showing some actual craft inside but PVZ is simply out-scrapping her. Brooke throwing the bigger shots but PVZ walking through it all now. But Brooke lands a monster right and another just before the bell. PVZ ate them well, but that might’ve stolen the round.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Brooke, 29-27 Brooke overall.

Round 4: PVZ keeps coming forward behind her jab now, doubled and tripled up. Brooke retreating and jabbing, looking for power counters. PVZ is giving her the chance as she leaves herself open during these exchanges. PVZ doesn’t seem to care anymore though. She’s pouring on the pressure, and let the chips fall where they may.

Brooke lands another right hand but it’s one versus 20 and Brooke’s nose is bleeding. PVZ lands a good uppercut and Brooke starting to clinch for safety. PVZ keeps the volume going right to the end of the round.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 VanZant, 38-37 Brooke overall.

Round 5: Final round and VanZant needs to win it to salvage a draw. She comes out pumping the jab and lands a huge left! Brooke’s head snaps back but she bites down and returns.

Brooke now trying to take the lead and both women are upping the output. PVZ’s hands are in constant motion but Brooke lands a right hand. Brooke trying to slip inside but she’s slowing a bit. PVZ lands a nice uppercut and Brooke clinches. Brooke really selling out for the right hand with 30 seconds left as PVZ keeps marching onward. Both women exchange big shots and we get to a clinch. PVZ hammers to the body inside as the round and the fight ends.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 VanZant, 47-47 overall for a draw.

Official Decision: Elle Brooke and Paige VanZant fight to a split draw (48-46, 46-48, 47-47)

Post Fight: So Brooke retains the title with a draw and the crowd is NOT please with that outcome. Draw was a reasonable result, but the 48-46 scorecard for VanZant is questionable to say the least.

VanZant speaks afterward and says she knew Brooke would be tough but that this “is what it is. It sets up the perfect rematch.”

Brooke says she can’t be sure she won because she’ll need to rewatch it, but then agrees with VanZant that a rematch is next. “I think I started strong but one of Paige’s best assets is she doesn’t let a bad round affect the next one,” and admits she dropped off as the fight went on.

Well, it appears these two will be running it back and per VanZant, it might happen in Dubai.

If you want to see full highlights of the fight, you can find those here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts