Alex Pereira is staying at heavyweight as he prepares to face Sergei Pavlovich in a five-round co-main occasion at UFC 335. The battle could have main implications for his place in the heavyweight title image and his dream of making UFC historical past.
With Ciryl Gane and Josh Hokit set to compete for the undisputed heavyweight title at UFC 334, Pereira will have a likelihood to keep his hopes of turning into the first three-division champion in UFC historical past alive.
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However, the Brazilian hasn’t taken kindly to being handed over for an speedy rematch against Gane. Since their controversial battle at the White House, Pereira has repeatedly called for referee Herb Dean to be fired and has become more and more vocal about the UFC’s heavyweight division.
His feedback have now caught the consideration of former two-division champion Henry Cejudo, who believes Pereira has become too entitled after receiving so many alternatives from the promotion.
Henry Cejudo Claims Alex Pereira Has Benefited From Too Many UFC Opportunities
Pereira’s current criticism hasn’t been restricted to Dean. He has also questioned the UFC’s resolution to headline UFC 334 with Gane vs. Hokit, arguing that Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes would be a more deserving important occasion. He has also taken purpose at Gane’s rise to the prime, pointing to the controversial eye poke against Tom Aspinall and the unlawful pictures he believes Gane landed against him.
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The Brazilian even accused Daniel Cormier and the UFC brass of pushing Gane vs. Hokit through propaganda. Both Cormier and UFC CEO Dana White have since pushed back against his claims, describing them as unfaithful and pushed by paranoia.
Now, Cejudo has added his voice to the debate. Speaking on a current episode of his Pound 4 Pound podcast, the former Olympic gold medalist argued that Pereira has benefited from the UFC’s willingness to fast-track him into main fights since his debut in 2021.
He said, “This is something that I will say about Alex Pereira, and it’s part of him being a bit spoiled. Alex, I’m not picking on you; I’m just seeing what’s been done with you and how it’s been that you’ve skipped lines. You’ve skipped the line long enough, bro.”
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Cejudo acknowledged that Pereira had a official purpose to be annoyed about the unlawful blows in his battle against Gane. However, he believes the Brazilian also wants to settle for that he lost the battle and transfer ahead rather than anticipating another speedy title alternative.
He defined, “You had your opportunity against Ciryl Gane, and you lost. There were illegal blows; I agree with you on that, but man, that jab from Ciryl Gane wobbled you. Ciryl Gane was just keeping on his feet, and we saw where the fight was likely going. It’s your first debut at heavyweight, man. It is what it is.”
According to Cejudo, Pereira should not expect another shot at the heavyweight championship without placing collectively a few wins in the division first. He believes there are a lot of contenders who deserve their likelihood, particularly after Pereira obtained an alternative to battle for the interim title at the White House.
He said, “To be upset, after not having a fight at heavyweight and then getting a shot to fight for the interim title at the White House? Bro, there’s no complaining here. I feel like he needs to win at least two or three more to fight for the title. I think there’s a lot of people in line.”
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Cejudo also in contrast Pereira’s rise to that of former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. While Usman spent years working his approach through the rankings, Cejudo believes Pereira’s path to turning into a two-division champion was significantly quicker because the UFC acknowledged his star energy and knockout skill.
He said, “Alex, the reality is, you have to know and see where people are coming from. I don’t see it as ‘Oh my god, Alex is making history, oh my god he’s become champion in two and a half years.’ No, he’s been given the opportunity by the UFC.”
Cejudo concluded, “He didn’t go the Kamaru Usman route where he fought everyone in the top ten before he fought the number one contenders. That takes years. They liked his fighting style. They liked his vicious knockouts. ‘Here you go, bro, this is what we need, this is what the casuals want, this is what you get.'”
Has the UFC Given Alex Pereira Too Many Shortcuts to Championship Glory?
There is fact behind Cejudo’s argument. Pereira made his UFC debut in 2021, knocking out Andreas Michailidis with a flying knee. He adopted that up with a resolution win over Bruno Silva and a knockout victory against Sean Strickland, incomes a middleweight title shot against Israel Adesanya in November 2022.
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Pereira defeated Adesanya to win the middleweight championship but lost it in their rematch just six months later. His fast rise was helped by his celebrated kickboxing rivalry with Adesanya, which had already made him a recognizable title before his UFC title run.
He then moved up to mild heavyweight and obtained a title alternative after just one battle in the division, a split-decision win over Jan Blachowicz. Pereira went on to beat Jiri Prochazka for the vacant title at UFC 295 before defending it thrice in just 175 days against Prochazka, Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr.
His reign finally ended with a loss to Magomed Ankalaev, but Pereira secured an speedy rematch and won back the championship. He then moved up to heavyweight and was given the alternative to battle Gane for the interim title at the White House, with that belt subsequently turning into the undisputed championship.
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Pereira’s profession definitely hasn’t adopted the conventional route of working through a long checklist of ranked contenders before getting a title shot. However, his spectacular knockouts, kickboxing pedigree, and marketability have made him one of the UFC’s largest stars. In a promotion where reputation can affect matchmaking, that appeal has clearly labored in his favor.
Still, Cejudo believes Pereira wants to earn his next alternative the laborious approach. His upcoming conflict with Pavlovich at UFC 335 could be the good likelihood to do just that. A win would strengthen his case for another heavyweight title shot, while a loss could go away him going through a much longer highway back to championship competition.
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