Alex Pereira Reveals Who Gets Title Shot if Israel Adesanya Doesn’t Want To Move Forward With Rematch

UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira had a revealing year in the Octagon in 2022. Not only did the Brazilian make considerable strides in the division but also captured the gold at UFC 281 after he defeated arch-nemesis, Israel Adesanya. Since the fateful fight on Nov. 12, 2022, the murmurs have grown stronger for a title rematch involving the two. While ‘Poatan’ is soaking in the limelight and enjoying his time as the champion, the pundits have speculated Pereira’s first title defense as the litmus test of his UFC career. Similarly, the former kickboxer recently broke his silence about his UFC return and the much-awaited title defense. Also, the Sao Paulo fighter picked his challenger in the unfortunate case of ‘The Last Style Bender’, not stepping in the ring for a fourth time against him.

Pereira picks his opponent for the title defense

The 7-1 record holder later expanded on the discussion and disclosed that there were no talks of the upcoming fight being held currently. The proud fighter who recently brought the UFC belt to his tribe clarified, “There’s nothing in the works now. And I know probably it’s going to be easy with the rematch, or probably Robert Whitaker.”

‘The Reaper’ stands in the pole position to fight the newly crowned middleweight king. Suddenly the Australian fighter, whose last two Octagon losses in almost 8 years were against Israel Adesanya, finds himself in title contention. While the same wouldn’t have been the case if the man heading the middleweight division would have been Israel Adesanya.

The former champion was scheduled to fight another famed Brazilian, Paulo Costa, at UFC 284. Unfortunately, the fight fell apart due to contract negotiations, and Whittaker’s hopes for a quick shot at the title also took a hit. However, the Australian remains a win away or a fallout involving Adesanya from having his shot at the title.

Alex Pereira gives a speculated timeline for his return

The middleweight fighter spoke with ESPN’s Carlos Contreras Legaspi and talked about being in the corner of his training partner and coach, Glover Teixeira. Notably, the fellow compatriot will endeavor to recapture the light heavyweight gold at UFC 283 this coming Saturday night.

However, the 35-year-old fighter who fought 3 times in the cage in the previous year also put the mind of his fans at ease and revealed his return timeline. The former Glory champion is eyeing a quick return to the Octagon. Thus, he said, “Well, I want to come back in April or May. I will be ready for those dates.”

Read More: Which Tribe Does the UFC Star Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira Belong To?

Subsequently, he picked his opponent. While there is no shortage of opponents for the anticipated bout, the prominent names in the mix include the former champion Robert Whittaker and the star on the rise, Khamzat Chimaev.

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What do you think of this declaration by the middleweight champ Alex Pereira? Let us know in the comments below.