Yesterday at Salt Lake City’s Delta Center, UFC light heavyweight king Alex Pereira left no ‘stone’ unturned to make UFC head honcho Dana White’s controversial event, UFC 307, a blockbuster. With his lethal striking, ‘Poatan’ silenced his doubters, like Chael Sonnen, who once claimed, “Khalil Rountree Jr. is going to walk through Pereira,” when he sent ‘The War Horse’ into the shadow realm. With his latest win, Pereira now has seven out of nine wins in the octagon by knockout, further cementing his legacy as the best striker with a back-to-back fifth win in the light heavyweight division.
However, even after delivering an outstanding performance, the Brazilian did not impress his GLORY kickboxing rival Artem Vakhitov, who recently dismissed the notion of supporters calling ‘Poatan’ the “best striker right now” in an interview.
Artem Vakhitov shuts down the fans’ verdict on ‘Poatan’?
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While speaking to Submission Radio ahead of his UFC debut, Artem Vakhitov made a huge statement when the host quickly raised a question about his former kickboxing rival Alex Pereira, asking, “What do you think about people saying he’s the best striker in MMA right now?” Without wasting any time, Vakhitov denied accepting ‘Poatan’ as the best striker, emphasizing the importance of combinations.
Vakhitov claimed, “I don’t think that he’s a good or the best striker because, you know, to have just one good punch doesn’t mean you’re a really good striker. You know, a real striker is someone who has a lot of combinations and very different opportunities. He just throws one punch and delivers it well, but it doesn’t mean he has good distance, timing, and other stuff.”
via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 13: (L-R) Alex Pereira of Brazil and Jamahal Hill trade punches in the UFC light heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 300 event at T-Mobile Arena on April 13, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
For those who don’t know, Vakhitov and Pereira squared off twice in the kickboxing realm. The results were surprising, with one win for Pereira and the last one going to Vakhitov. Now, the Russian is not shy about asking for a trilogy in the UFC, which will be intriguing to see how Dana White and the company respond to this, especially since Pereira has already achieved superstar status in the UFC while Artem Vakhitov is yet to begin his journey in the MMA juggernaut.
Alex Pereira talks about Artem Vakhitov’s chances of succeeding in the UFC
Alex Pereira, along with Israel Adesanya, is among the few kickboxing names who have gained fame in MMA. With the upcoming debut of another lifelong kickboxer, Artem Vakhitov, fans are left wondering if this 33-year-old will achieve the same level of success as ‘Poatan’ and Izzy in their MMA journeys. According to Alex Pereira, the answer is no. He recently expressed this at the UFC 307 media day when asked about Vakhitov’s chances of success in the UFC.
Pereira stated, “I stopped following kickboxing, so I kind of don’t know how he’s [Vakhitov] doing, so I don’t know what his potential is. But I think fighting me in the UFC at this point could be hard. People are mistaken sometimes and think that it’s just easy to create a story like Israel Adesanya. Guys who beat me in a fight a long time ago think that they can just come here and make the same story… Bro, they are not me; they are not Israel Adesanya.”
What are your thoughts on Artem Vakhitov’s remark that Alex Pereira is not the current best striker in MMA? Do you share the same opinion? Drop your thoughts below.
Debate
Is Artem Vakhitov right in dismissing Alex Pereira's striking skills despite his UFC dominance?