Alex Pereira Makes Unexpected Decision for Heavyweight Move After Jon Jones Rumors at UFC 303

Alex Pereira is taking a cautious approach toward his goal of moving up to heavyweight! At UFC 303, ‘Poatan’ took on Jiri Prochazka for his second defense of the light heavyweight crown after Conor McGregor’s withdrawal from the event prompted a short-notice change for the main event. While the first clash between ‘Poatan’ and ‘BJP’ was considered by some to have been a controversial stoppage, this time around, the Brazilian left no doubts in anyone’s mind as he finished his opponent with a spectacular head-kick and closed out the show with follow up shots.

During the post-fight interview, Pereira had stated that a move up to heavyweight is, “…in my future.” The response from the crowd to the statement was very positive, but during the post-fight press conference, ‘Poatan’ revealed that at the moment, he is taking the idea of moving up to heavyweight one step at a time.

Heavyweight dreams not a pressing concern for Alex Pereira after UFC 303 win  

Alex Pereira is currently on a 4-fight win streak that began with his light-heavyweight debut against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291 in 2023. With just 11 MMA fights needed to become a two-division champion in the promotion, Pereira is in a unique position where he can accomplish a feat that no other UFC fighter has ever done, becoming a 3 weight-division champion.

While the current undisputed heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, has already made it clear that he would be interested in fighting ‘Poatan’, the Brazilian confessed at the UFC 303 press conference that it’s not something that he’d approach lightly.

Pereira stated, “Man, for heavyweight, it’s something I gotta do preparation, I gotta be prepared so I don’t know for next step right now. You guys saw I took this fight on two week’s notice, for heavyweight gotta be more planned so right now, I’m just focused on defending my title.”

Jones is currently recovering from a torn pectoral tendon which had forced him out of his title defense against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 in 2023, but there have been reports that once he returns, the promotion is planning to re-schedule the fight between him and Miocic. Dana White, in his appearance on ‘Club Shay Shay’ with Shannon Sharpe, stated, “First of all, he has to fight Stipe, that fight has to happen. And I don’t disagree with DC, the next fight, should be Aspinall.”

As such, Alex Pereira’s hesitance in pursuing the move up to 265 lbs does make sense, with the top of the heavyweight division already having a line-up of fights. But during the UFC 303 post-fight press conference, the UFC head honcho also revealed that there is another problem with Pereira moving up to heavyweight too quickly.

UFC boss confesses Pereira not ready to be a UFC heavyweight yet  

According to Dana White, Alex Pereira still has work to do before he gets on board with the Brazilian’s plans to make history in the UFC. Speaking at the UFC 303 post-fight press conference, the UFC boss confessed, “If he cleaned out a division and we were like there’s literally nobody left for this guy to fight and he’s 37, if he wants to move up to heavyweight with this but that’s not the case.”

White further went on to point out that for his clash against Jiri Prochazka, Pereira re-hydrated up to 230 lbs when he stepped into the cage, as such, he claimed that fighting heavyweights who have to cut down to the 265 lbs weight limit, might be too much for ‘Poatan’ to handle. According to White, “…it’s just a whole another level.”

In conclusion, while Pereira’s ambition to become a three-division champion is commendable, his strategic caution and focus on current challenges reflect a wise and measured approach that was echoed by Dana White. It remains to be seen what the future holds for ‘Poatan’ but what are your thoughts on his heavyweight ambitions? Do you think he can be successful in making history as the first 3-weight champion? Let us know in the comments below.