He was born in the favelas of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Growing up in poverty, Alex Pereira dropped out of primary school—a decision that would force him to come face-to-face with the realization that the cycle of poverty was only going to continue. He first worked as a bricklayer’s assistant to make ends meet, but the pay was less than peanuts. Next, he started working in a tire shop without realizing the place would only further push him into darkness. A young Pereira would watch his co-workers drink iced cachacas—a Brazilian sugarcane spirit. Soon, he joined them and that’s where his alcohol addiction began.

By the time he was 16, he would drink a liter of it a day. He even started getting paid for his work in alcohol and not money. “At that time when I was really lost, I used to drink almost one liter [of alcohol] a day. I had… kind of a ritual. Until 12pm, I used to drink 3 cachacas,” Alex Pereira once confessed.

“At 10 am, at 11 am and another one at noon… I had no financial condition. I liked beer, but damn, I had no money.”

But somewhere within him, he always embodied a fighter. In an attempt to save whatever was left of his life, he looked toward kickboxing in 2009. He knew he couldn’t play soccer, but had the confidence that he could fight. He got in shape, trained, and eventually turned professional. However, all of this was easier said than done. ‘Poatan’ still battled his alcohol addiction during the first four years of his pro career. It took him four attempts to get sober before he was successful.

Pereira also discovered his indigenous heritage during training with Belocqua Wera. All this discipline and hard work paid off more than he expected. He became the first man in GLORY history to hold two belts in different weight classes at the same time—the vacant interim light-heavyweight championship. GLORY was also the place where Pereira’s iconic rivalry with Israel Adesanya took birth, which reached its culmination in the UFC’s octagon.

The man has made his money today, but he hasn’t forgotten the place and conditions he started from. Alex Pereira took to his X account to post a new tweet. “I remember when my sons were on their last pair of diapers and I didn’t have money to buy new ones,” he wrote and posted a picture where he could be seen holding bundles of cash, whilst seated in his posh Ferrari. He has surely come a long way.

Pereira has two sons, Alessandro Vidal Silva and Lohan Vidal Silva, and it looks like the proud father is doing everything he can to take care of them. Alessandro seems interested in following his father’s footsteps into the combat world. Before Pereira’s UFC 300 fight, Alessandro stated that he wanted to fight at UFC 400, and in fact, this kid has already been making it to the news.

Remember at UFC 287, Adesanya knocked out Pereira and then mocked his son? It was Alessandro. ‘Izzy’ did this to settle the score after Alessandro mocked him during his 2017 GLORY fight when Pereira defeated him.

The light heavyweight king chose to raise his sons in America rather than his homeland of Brazil, stating, “But most important for me in America is the level of security. I’m not talking badly about Brazil; I grew up in Brazil. But it’s safer in America. Here, my kids can go to school and not worry. We can talk on the phone. You can wear a gold necklace.”

They are also training in MMA and BJJ, about which Alex said, “I need to set an example. They watch, and they want to be part of it. That’s the cool thing.”

A͏s͏ Alex Pereira ope͏ned up about his past stru͏ggles, the MMA communi͏ty ͏r͏a͏ll͏ie͏d to ͏r͏eassure him and celebrated his͏ remarkable͏ achi͏eveme͏nt͏s. ͏What did they say?

Alex Pereira: His struggles bring tears to fans’ eyes…

Fatherhood is one of the toughest jobs around the world and it takes immense guts to when you are living in deficiency. Alex Pereira is the prime example of a father who never forgets about his kids, even when adversity hits him.

• “Shiii as a father i hope no dad has to know that feeling fr.” 

Alex Pereira may have started training much later than fighters usually do. However, his case seems to be that of pure talent. He has faced some of the biggest names in the UFC and not just that, he has saved several UFC cards by stepping in on short notice. No wonder fans see the fire within him.

• “From the favelas to the world. Incredible story.”
• “If there’s anyone who deserves where he is now for everything he’s been through, it’s this guy.”

However, let us not get that 37 years old. That’s the age most fighters think about retiring. Think about Jon Jones, for instance. He is the same get and has been contemplating retirement. Now Alex Pereira hasn’t spoken about retiring anytime soon, but it might not be too bold to assume that he isn’t going to stick around for years ahead.

At the same time, he has had great momentum this year. He fought three times in 2024 and one can only hope to see similar results in 2025.

• “Alex deserves anything good.”
• “So much deserved. As a father, I know that feeling and the taste of change our children lives. It’s amazing.”

Now, Alex Pereira is thinking about moving to the heavyweight division and challenging Jon Jones. While Dana White has not been on board with such a matchup, fight fans would surely love to see Jones versus Pereira. What do you think?