For many, calling out Alex Pereira seemed like a ridiculous idea for Jake Paul. He still went ham with his callout after defeating Mike Perry, despite having Mike Tyson on standby as their rescheduled bout is set to take place in November. But guess what? It did not take much time for ‘Poatan’ to take notice of the callout, and he called Paul via Facetime, just seconds later.

Conor McGregor was the only UFC fighter to ever compete in a boxing match while contracted to the promotion. Since then, no one’s been allowed to follow suit, and fighters like former champion Francis Ngannou had to get out of the UFC to pursue those endeavors. But Alex Pereira’s recent response to Jake Paul’s challenge has indicated that Dana White may have no problems with him stepping inside a squared circle.

Alex Pereira seemingly claims Dana White will have no problems with him boxing Jake Paul

The light heavyweight champion recently posted a video clip of him FaceTiming ‘The Problem Child’ as the latter tried to convince the UFC champion to take the fight, saying, “Hey, let’s run it.” How do you think the man with ‘hands of stone’ responded? Well, the Brazilian ace seemed excited about that proposition, and he seemed to have no problems putting on heavier gloves, something that he was used to during his ‘Glory’ days.

“Chama! Let’s go my guy,” said Alex Pereira, which was one of the very few instances when we’ve heard him talk in English. But the biggest question Jake Paul had was about Dana White and if he’d be willing to let him take the boxing match. The video wasn’t clear but it seemed like Pereira’s mentor Glover Teixeira replied to Paul, “We’ll talk to him, we’ll talk to him,” after the champion said, “Yeah.”

What does Alex Pereira’s response mean? Is he the next in line after Conor McGregor for a boxing match while still being under contract with the UFC? We don’t know that yet, but what we do know, or at least, assume is that Pereira may not be as easy of an opponent as Jake Paul thinks he’d be because he recently showed his boxing skills against a heavyweight fighter.

Chinese boxing legend believes ‘Poatan’ has what it takes to box

Former WBO interim heavyweight champion Zhilei Zhang recently participated in a sparring session against Alex Pereira. The sparring led the veteran boxer, who recently knocked the light out of Deontay Wilder, to conclude that ‘Poatan’s power in his punches can make him a legitimate threat to the heavyweight boxers if he decides to make the jump from MMA to the squared circle.

“He’s [Alex Pereira] a good boxer. I can tell you he has good reflections, he has good speed, and good power. I watch him fight a lot, in UFC, he kind of dominates everybody standing, and striking. I think he has it… I think he has the power to translate to heavyweight [boxing],” Zhilei Zhang stated on ‘The MMA Hour’. That’s certainly a big compliment and a seal of approval from a veteran of boxing.

Alex Pereira currently seems to have some other plans in mind, with his eye on a third divisional title. But is a Jake Paul fight happening in his future? Would you like to see ‘Poatan’ fight the YouTube sensation? Let us know in the comments.