Jakarta Former light heavyweight champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Alex Pereira, has confirmed that he will only focus on completing unfinished affairs with Magomed Ankalaev, not moving to the heavyweight division as many fans expect.
"My current focus is to fight Ankalaev, take my belt back, then we'll see what happens after that," Pereira said, quoted from the MMA Fighting page monitored in Jakarta, Saturday, June 21.
The name Alex Pereira, or who is familiarly called "Poatan", has indeed been one of the brightest stars in the UFC in recent years. However, his status as the king of the lightweight heavyweight had to disappear after being defeated by Magomed Ankalaev in the main UFC match March 313, 2025. The defeat made many parties speculate that the next logical steps for the Pereira were to move up to the heavyweight class, considering that the division is now in transition.
With the absence of Jon Jones who several times insisted he was reluctant to fight in the near future, as well as interim champion Tom Aspinall who had difficulty finding his equal opponent, the public considered Pereira to be the right person to shake up the UFC's most elite division.
Even so, the Brazilian fighter chose to focus on aiming for a rematch against Ankalaev to avenge his defeat and reclaim the belt that was snatched from him.
"Wherever around the time span of September, October, November, for me there is no difference, I want to fight," said Pereira.
In a short time, Pereira has indeed made history as one of the most phenomenal UFC fighters. His career shot from debutants to world champions in two different divisions, namely middleweight and light heavyweight. No wonder the public's desire to see him chasing a belt in the heavyweight also strengthens.
However, for Poatan, this step will not materialize in the near future. He assessed that the heavyweight division had enough dynamics of its own, while his current mission is to emphasize the supremacy in the lightweight heavyweight class.
"Let them slaughter each other in that division. Right now, I'm just focusing on the light heavyweight division," Pereira said asserting his stance.
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With this statement, speculation over the dream duel between Pereira and heavyweight monsters like Tom Aspinall or even Jon Jones should be postponed longer.
Pereira now only has one goal, namely to return the UFC gold belt to its waist by defeating Ankalaev. The public is also waiting for a rematch between these two dangerous fighters to become one of the most awaited parties in the late half of 2025.
Until now, the UFC has not announced the official date of the rematch between Pereira and Ankalaev. However, both Pereira and the promoter will certainly prepare for a fight which is expected to be able to heat up the competition in the light heavyweight division.
For UFC fans, one thing is certain: Alex Pereira still has big ambitions, and Poatan's path in the octagon will not stop in the near future.
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