Alex Pereira could be the best find the UFC has had in recent times. In his short MMA career, Poatan revolutionized the entire dynamics of the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions by winning both belts in record time. With just two losses in his MMA career, Pereira is destined for greatness. However, it seems like his next fight against Khalil Rountree might hand him another loss on his sheet, taking away his Light Heavyweight belt.

At least that’s the possibility now that Artem Vakhitov, the last man to defeat Poatan in kickboxing, has spilled all the beans on the strategy to beat the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Just in time before Rountree and Pereira go one-on-one next month. But what is the secret strategy to use against Pereira? Well, it’s none other than pure striking. Considering the fact that Pereira lacks defensive skills.

He said, “I see it as a basic striker. Only a basic striker can (beat Pereira). Not a basic MMA fighter, wrestler, or grappler. Because all of Alex’s work is focused on striking, kickboxing, and Muay Thai. Someone who knows how to work properly in the stand-up and knows where to defend themselves. I see mistakes, that Pereira has almost no defense. You even saw the first fight with (Jan) Blachowicz. Everyone knows that there is no defense in the first round, but the attack prevails and compensates. We all saw the second fight with Adesanya. We all saw how Israel got in.” 

Israel Adesanya, who is an out-and-out striker, managed to knock out Pereira just four minutes into the second round. A shocker for fans, but many who know Poatan’s game surely would’ve known this was a potential outcome. Now, Rountree could look to capitalize on his offensive capabilities in order to dethrone Pereira from the Light Heavyweight throne at UFC 307 in October.

In their last meeting in 2021 in Rotterdam, Vakhitov, being the talented kickboxer that he is, handed Pereira a majority decision loss using the same strategy. Since then, the Brazilian has focused his attention on MMA and excelled in the UFC, becoming champion in two weight classes. Vakhitov, motivated by the prospect of a match with Pereira, is looking to prove his skill in the Octagon and challenge his opponent’s reputation as one of the world’s best strikers, now that he too is in the UFC and is a part of Dana White’s Contender Series. But what is the history between the two?

The trilogy waiting to happen

The Russian kickboxer fought Alex Pereira twice in his career, and his record is now 1-1. Their opening fight ended with a split decision victory for Pereira, who became the undisputed two-division champion at GLORY in 2021. Vakhitov then got his revenge by defeating Pereira in a majority decision eight months after the matchup. Following in Alex Pereira’s footsteps, Artem Vakhitov made his professional MMA debut in 2023.

The Russian lost his initial fight due to dislocating his shoulder. Despite that, he has achieved back-to-back victories since then. Vakhitov has only one dream that can come true at any time: he wants to fight under the UFC and dethrone Pereira in his championships. And now that he is a part of the Contender series, the wait shouldn’t be long before we get to witness one of the best MMA fights featuring two striking greats. Who do you think will win the decisive match? Let us know in the comments.