Tag: Alex Pereira

Jamahal Hill on yawning after Alex Pereira’s win over Khalil Rountree: ‘I never said the fight was boring’

Jamahal Hill says his reaction to Alex Pereira’s finish of Khalil Rountree was taken out of context.

[autotag]Jamahal Hill[/autotag] says his reaction to [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]’s finish of [autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag] was taken out of context.

Hill (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) was in attendance to watch light heavyweight champion Pereira brutally TKO Rountree in Round 4 of Saturday’s UFC 307 main event in Salt Lake City. Rountree won the first two rounds before getting finished.

After Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) stopped Rountree (13-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC), the camera panned to Hill, who was seen yawning. Hill’s yawning reaction was understood by many as him thinking the fight was boring.

“It’s crazy how y’all see a clip with no context, no nothing, and y’all just be ready to talk sh*t and just attack and come disrespectful as ever,” Hill said on his YouTube channel. “It’s hilarious.

“I wasn’t mic’d up or anything like that, so I couldn’t explain the context of the yawn and things like that after the fight. I think I did hear a reporter told Alex, ‘Oh, Jamahal said the fight was boring.’ I never said the fight was boring.”

Hill was knocked out in the first round of his title fight against Pereira at UFC 300 in April. He predicted that Pereira would struggle against a southpaw like Rountree, and explains that his yawn was just him implying that he knew the fight would pan out like that.

“Now, to the yawn, the yawn at the end was – was it entertaining? Yes,” Hill said. “Was I impressed? No. I’m not impressed. You know, I’m ready to go. Did I see anything in the cage that scares me or that I didn’t expect to see? No.

“So as far as reacting and everything, I don’t think I really need to do much of a reaction to this fight because, before, if you watch, or you watch my breakdowns, you can see I told you exactly how this fight was going to go.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

Jake Paul says Khalil Rountree exposed Alex Pereira holes: ‘I know I would beat him’ in boxing

After watching Alex Pereira finish Khalil Rountree, Jake Paul is even more confident that he could beat him in boxing.

After watching [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] finish [autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag], [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] is even more confident that he could beat him in boxing.

Paul called out light heavyweight champion Pereira for a boxing match after he scored a TKO finish of Mike Perry in July. “Poatan” responded and was game for a fight.

Pereira is fresh off a violent Round 4 TKO of Rountree to retain his light heavyweight title in Saturday’s UFC 307 headliner. He lost the first two rounds, before finding his groove and battering Rountree.

Paul thinks Rountree exposed Pereira in that fight.

”One thousand percent I would beat him,” Paul told Adin Ross on boxing Pereira. “That’s the thing is, Rountree actually kind of exposed that he doesn’t have a high volume output. He doesn’t like body shots. In MMA, Pereira would rip my head off. But boxing is a completely different sport, and the pace of it, and the style of it.”

Paul (10-1) takes on 58-year-old boxing legend Mike Tyson (50-6-2) on Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium in Dallas. With Pereira currently under UFC contract, a fight with Paul is highly unlikely.

”He has holes,” Paul said. “I mean, Rountree rocked him, hurt him a couple of times to the body, but didn’t follow up on it. So if anything, this fight showed me, yes, Alex Pereira is great. But I know I would beat him in a boxing match, and I still would love to make that happen. Pressure is on him. If he can find his way out of the UFC contract like Nate Diaz did, then eventually him and I can talk.”

Pereira, a former two-weight division Glory Kickboxing champion, boxed once professionally – a TKO win over Marcelo de Souza Cruz 2017 in Brazil.

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Alex Pereira vs. Artem Vakhitov: Full videos of their two GLORY Kickboxing matches

Now that Artem Vakhitov has joined Alex Pereira in the UFC, check out their two kickboxing matches in full here.

The history between [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] and [autotag]Artem Vakhitov[/autotag] was on full display Tuesday during Dana White’s Contender Series 75.

Twice kickboxing rivals in GLORY, Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) and Vakhitov (3-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) could break the tie in MMA now that they’re both under the UFC umbrella.

Vakhitov earned a UFC contract Tuesday when he finished opponent Islem Masraf (3-1) with strikes in the first round. Pereira flew out to spectate the fight from cageside.

According to UFC CEO Dana White, his recommendation was also taken into account when deciding if the promotion would extend an offer to Vakhitov, which he did.

While there’s tremendous respect between the two former GLORY champions, there’s also an acknowledgment of their history and the potential they could meet again.

Check out their two kickboxing matches in full in the videos below.

Fight 1: Glory 77

Date: Jan. 30, 2021
Location: Rotterdam, Netherlands
Result: Alex Pereira def. Artem Vakhitov via split decision (scorecards not announced)

Fight 2: Glory 77

Date: Sept. 24, 2021
Location: Rotterdam, Netherlands
Result: Artem Vakhitov def. Alex Pereira via majority decision (48-46, 46-48, 47-47, 48-46, 49-45)

Conor McGregor says ‘2024 has been Alex Pereira’s year,’ lobbies for Jon Jones showdown

Conor McGregor thinks Alex Pereira is currently the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.

[autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] believes [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] is currently the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.

Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) notched his third light heavyweight title defense in the span of seven months when he stopped Khalil Rountree by fourth-round TKO in Saturday’s UFC 307 main event in Salt Lake City.

McGregor had high praise for Pereira and the banner year he’s had in 2024.

“2024 has been Alex Pereira’s year, no one can deny that,” McGregor told The Schmo.”If we go by that, forget belts, forget anything of that, it’s in competition. He’s (three) fights this year, (three) KOs, and his most impressive one was most recently. I’d put Alex Pereira as No. 1.”

McGregor was hoping Pereira would announce a move up to heavyweight after finishing Rountree, but “Poatan” said he plans on staying put at 205 pounds for the time being. McGregor thinks Pereira would be an interesting stylistic matchup for heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who defends his belt against Stipe Miocic in the UFC 309 headliner Nov. 16 in New York.

“I think he poses a lot of problems for Jon also,” McGregor continued. “That’s a dangerous style for Jon. But it’s a decent one for him because he’s not so big. Jon is new to the heavyweight division. Jon, he had a nice one against Ciryl Gane, but he’s still untested at heavyweight.

“And I’m sure in the back of his mind, he has that thought that some of these guys are really big. Alex is a nice one and still a dangerous one, though. At the core of it, it’s probably even more dangerous. I’d be excited to see that bout take place for sure.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

Daniel Cormier explains how ‘very special’ Alex Pereira can become GOAT after UFC 307

Daniel Cormier maps out a path for how Alex Pereira can become the greatest UFC fighter of all time.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] has mapped out a path for how [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] can become the greatest UFC fighter of all time.

Pereira has now defended his UFC light heavyweight title three times in the span of seven months, most recently with a brutal fourth-round TKO of Khalil Rountree this past Saturday at UFC 307. Pereira, who also held the UFC middleweight title, now has as many title defenses as Cormier did at 205 pounds.

Cormeir said winning a third UFC title could separate Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) from the pack.

“Pereira is in the conversation for the greatest of all time,” Cormier said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Chael Sonnen. “Not yet quite the greatest, but if he can somehow win a fight at heavyweight, compete for the championship, or continue to defend this belt at light heavyweight, I don’t know that you can even question it.

“This is a man who became the middleweight champ, has defended the light heavyweight championship. He was never a real middleweight, though. He was so big that it’s easy to see how Izzy (Adesanya) got him the second time after he won the belt. …This dude is special. He’s very special.”

Cormier revealed that Pereira and his team contemplated pulling out of the fight after “Poatan” was dealing with a slew of injuries. So with Pereira deciding to fight and putting on a memorable performance, Cormier said the sky is the limit for him now.

“I believe he can do whatever he wants at this point, because he’s got a lot of goodwill with the organization right now,” Cormier said. “Pereira was hurt, too. I was talking to his manager and his coach after the fight, and they said they told the UFC, ‘We’re going to go to Salt Lake, and we’re going to try and train, but we may pull out.’ The UFC said to him, ‘That would suck, but let us know how it goes because we have two title fights, and we’ll elevate one if that’s what we need to do.’

“The goodwill you gain from the organization when you do that is unbelievable. So, if he did go into the offices of Dana, Hunter and those guys, and go, ‘I would like to fight Tom Aspinall for the interim championship’ – those actions that he showed last weekend leads to you receiving those types of opportunities. The world is really his oyster in terms of what he can do next, if he so chooses to try a fight up at heavyweight. But for me, it’s fight Ankalaev. Right now, you’ve got to fight Ankalaev if he gets through Rakic.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

Dana White explains how Alex Pereira convinced him to sign Artem Vakhitov to UFC

Alex Pereira went to bat for his former kickboxing rival, Artem Vakhitov. Luckily for him, Dana White was willing to listen.

LAS VEGAS – It was [autotag]Artem Vakhitov[/autotag]’s former kickboxing rival who talked [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] into signing him to the UFC.

Vakhitov (3-1) earned a UFC contract Tuesday when he scored a first-round TKO of Islem Masraf (3-1) at Dana White’s Contender Series 75 from the UFC Apex. White admits he was initially hesitant to sign former two-time Glory light heavyweight champion Vakhitov, the last man to defeat [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] in kickboxing, but “Poatan” convinced him.

“That’s why I’m so late. I’ve been back there talking to Alex this whole time,” White told reporters, including MMA Junkie, during a Dana White’s Contender Series 75 post-fight news conference. “He said, ‘Obviously, a little more clinching than you would expect.’ You would expect the other guy to clinch with him, not him clinching. But he said, ‘This is what I think. I think he’s talented enough. I think he deserves to be here. He’s had, obviously, a ton of fights in his career.’

“Which is what I thought, too, going in. He said, ‘I think that the Contender Series, no matter where you’ve fought or what you’ve done, puts a different type of pressure on you, and you might not perform the way you normally would.’ He thinks that this is a tremendous amount of pressure. He said, ‘All I know is I’m glad I never had to go through the Contender Series.'”

Vakhitov and Pereira split their two kickboxing appearances. Pereira won the first fight by split decision and Vakhitov avenged his loss in their rematch by majority decision.

White acknowledges that many fighters have noticed the success that former kickboxers Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira have had in the UFC, and want to follow suit.

“What I actually think, like we were saying earlier, it’s fascinating how these guys that came out of this whole circuit with Israel and Alex, including them, are doing so well in the UFC,” White said. “It’s fascinating, so yeah, why not? I think it’s all of it. Obviously, those guys fought crazy fights that I’m sure they didn’t make any money. Joanna Jedrzejczyk and many others come over here, and it’s absolutely life changing for them.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for DWCS 75.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Oct. 8: Julianna Peña back on top

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 307, where Julianna Peña reclaimed the women’s bantamweight title.

The latest pay-per-view event for the UFC hosted a pair of title fights, producing a new two-time champion.

In the main event of UFC 307, [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] successfully defended his light heavyweight title by stopping [autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag] in a Fight of the Night battle. Pereira is already No. 1 in his division and in the P4P rankings, so he has nowhere to move. However, Rountree, even in a loss, moves up a few spots due to his stellar performance, moving from No. 12 to No. 10.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Julianna Peña[/autotag] emerged victorious in a controversial split decision win over [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] to win back the women’s bantamweight title. Peña entered the week at No. 2 and Pennington at No. 1, swapping places after Saturday’s result.

In another women’s bantamweight swap, No. 3 [autotag]Ketlen Viera[/autotag] lost to No. 4 [autotag]Kayla Harrison[/autotag]. They swap rankings in this week’s update.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.

DWCS 75 results: Artem Vakhitov earns UFC contract with help from ex-rival Alex Pereira

In a surprising twist, UFC champ Alex Pereira showed up to Dana White’s Contender Series and convinced White to sign rival Artem Vakhitov.

[autotag]Artem Vakhitov[/autotag] hasn’t even had a UFC fight yet, and the promotional wheels are already turning for an [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] showdown.

Two days after his UFC 307 title defense, Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) boarded a plane from Connecticut to Las Vegas to witness in person Vakhitov (3-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) earn a UFC deal at Dana White’s Contender Series 75.

Vakhitov was patient as he waited for his moment to significantly attack French heavyweight [autotag]Islem Masraf[/autotag] (3-1) with a flurry for a TKO stoppage at 4:23 of Round 1.

After the fight, UFC CEO Dana White said he debated what he should do with Vakhitov but consulted Pereira, who gave a resounding “absolutely, positively.”

https://twitter.com/espnmma/status/1843831661273722961

Vakhitov, 33, is a two-time Glory light heavyweight champion, who defended the title five times. He is the last man to defeat Pereira in kickboxing.

The two fighters are tied 1-1 in their lifetime series. Pereira won the first fight by split decision and Vakhitov won the second by majority decision.

Vakhitov told MMA Junkie prior to the bout that while he really wants to fight Pereira again, the two are friendly and respectful without bad blood.

He transitioned to MMA in June 2023 and suffered an injury in the bout. After back-to-back finishes, he earned his DWCS shot and maintained his 100 percent finishing rate.

https://twitter.com/espnmma/status/1843834875821871527

https://youtube.com/shorts/6wcT1uwJgu4

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Up-to-the-minute DWCS 75 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for DWCS 75.

Anthony Smith: Volkan Oezdemir could get Alex Pereira next if Magomed Ankalaev ‘lays an egg’ at UFC 308

Anthony Smith thinks it will take “No Time” for UFC find a different name for Alex Pereira if Magomed Ankalaev doesn’t deliver at UFC 308.

[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] doesn’t think the UFC light heavyweight division is as thin on title contender options as some might think.

With champion [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] further solidifying himself as a dominant force with a fourth-round TKO of Khalil Rountree on Saturday at UFC 307, many are wondering who will be next to take on “Poatan,” who reiterated his desire to stick at 205 pounds following his win.

[autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] is being anointed as a prominent candidate, but the Russian must first get through Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308 on Oct. 26 in Abu Dhabi. Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) is currently riding a divisional-best 12-fight unbeaten streak, but lackluster performances in key moments have hurt his standing, including when he fought Jan Blachowicz to a split draw in a vacant title bout at UFC 282 in December 2022.

Smith, a former light heavyweight title challenger, ESPN analyst, and podcast co-host, thinks Ankalaev needs to be spectacular against Rakic (14-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC) at UFC 308. Anything short of that in a winning manner, however, could open the door for someone else.

“I wouldn’t count on it because there’s a good chance Volkan Oezdemir and Carlos Ulberg could have a conversation, or at least some sort of a case to make for that fight,” Smith said on “The Bohnfire” podcast with MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn. “Especially if Ankalaev does what he kind of tends to do sometimes, and that’s kind of lay an egg and still win. He’s already been punished for that. He’s already done it once before in the Jan Blachowicz fight and Dana (White) was absolutely furious.”

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Oezdemir (20-7 MMA, 8-6 UFC) and Ulberg (9-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) meet at UFC Fight Night 248 on Nov. 23 in Macau. Oezdemir has won three of his past four and is coming off a first-round knockout of Johnny Walker at UFC on ABC 6 in June, while Ulberg is riding a six-fight winning streak with his most notable result being a 12-second knockout of Alonzo Menifield at UFC on ESPN 56 in May.

Smith has his own history with Ankalaev in the form of a second-round TKO loss at UFC 277 in July 2022. His analysis is not skewed by hard feelings, though, and Smith thinks it’s simply the reality that the UFC brass are not keen to put him back into a championship contest.

Ankalaev can control his own fortune by doing something dazzling later this month, but if he doesn’t, Smith sees more than one option in play.

“They’re not rushing Ankalaev into a title fight for a reason,” Smith said. “I think if that fight lays an egg and Volkan Oezdemir goes in there and finishes Carlos Ulberg, I think Volkan Oezdemir has a great case to make for a title shot. I wouldn’t just count on that fight (with Ankalaev).

“If Rakic wins, I think Rakic goes right into a title shot because Alex Pereira’s already shown a little bit of interest in Rakic. I think that style and his body type and kind of the way he fights interests him. I don’t think the UFC is really going to hold the Jiri Prochazka loss against (him) too badly.”

Ali Abdelaziz: Magomed Ankalaev ‘superior everywhere,’ will knock out Alex Pereira

Ali Abdelaziz is confident Magomed Ankalaev will be the one to take out UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.

[autotag]Ali Abdelaziz[/autotag] is confident [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] will be the one to take out UFC light heavyweight champion [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag].

Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) retained his light heavyweight title with a brutal fourth-round TKO of Khalil Rountree in Saturday’s UFC 307 main event at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

Pereira plans on staying put at 205 pounds, and Abdelaziz expects Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) to cement himself as No. 1 contender if he can get past Aleksandar Rakic Oct. 26 at UFC 308. No one has had an answer for Pereira on the feet at 205 pounds, but Abdelaziz says Ankalaev has the tools to beat him at his own game.

“I truly believe I think he will knock out Alex Pereira,” Abdelaziz told Submission Radio. “I believe he has every skill set to do it, and I believe he will do it. I didn’t know too much about Khalil before. I thought he was a 50-50 type of fighter. Yesterday, I’m a fan for life of Khalil Rountree. Khalil Rountree dropped him two times.

“I believe Ankalaev has way more precision, way smarter than both of them. I believe Alex Pereira’s chin is a little bit better at light heavyweight, but the man has been in so many wars, and I believe his chin is not there, and it’s normal. It’s not knocking on him. I don’t think his chin is there 100 percent.”

Abdelaziz dismissed the notion that the UFC is trying to protect Pereira by giving him favorable stylistic matchups, but sees Ankalaev as the more well-rounded fighter.

“I think Alex is a great champion, but I think Ankalaev is superior everywhere,” Abdelaziz said. “I believe Ankalaev will beat him in wrestling and grappling. I believe Ankalaev doesn’t get hit.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.