Joe Rogan had a lot to say about Alex Pereira’s unexpected setback in UFC 313. The Brazilian, known for his destructive striking, found himself in unfamiliar territory when facing Magomed Ankalaev. The Russian fighter won by unanimous decision, with judges scoring 49-46, 48-47, and 48-47 in his favor. It was evident that Pereira struggled to assert his usual dominance, and Joe Rogan identified a major fault in his performance—one that ultimately cost him the bout. So, what’s the big flaw?

According to the JRE host, Alex Pereira has always been known for his calm demeanor and calculated moves inside the Octagon. However, at UFC 313, something was different. Against Magomed Ankalaev, the feared striker did not look like himself. He wasn’t dominating the fight or pressuring his opponent; he was backing up and trying to find his rhythm. This strange performance prompted Joe Rogan to believe that ‘Poatan’ simply wasn’t his characteristic self.

“It’s really an impressive performance by Ankalaev,” Joe Rogan said. “Mostly Ankalaev was controlling the distance, was putting the pressure on him, and we saw ‘Poatan’ fight in what, up until now, is an uncharacteristic position: backing up and avoiding shots.” Pereira is generally the dominant one in the fight, walking opponents down and landing devastating attacks, but Ankalaev forced him to adopt an entirely different style—one that definitely made him appear out of place.

While some suggested that Alex Pereira‘s hectic schedule and obligations outside the cage affected his training, the UFC commentator definitely was not convinced. He feels Ankalaev’s unrelenting pressure pushed Alex Pereira into survival mode. “There were really only a couple of moments where Pereira stunned him – the head kick; there were a couple of other moments where he caught him with good shots.  But mostly, Ankalaev was controlling the distance, putting the pressure on him.” It wasn’t just Joe Rogan who felt that Alex Pereira felt different. Even the fans are of the opinion that something definitely was off.

Fans show their agreement with Joe Rogan’s analysis

As soon as fans got to hear the noted UFC commentator’s analysis, they couldn’t help but agree with it. It didn’t take a trained eye to notice that Pereira surely was on the defensive throughout the fight against Magomed Ankalaev. In fact, many took to social media to share their disbelief over the fact that the fearless Alex Pereira seemed too scared and cautious, which ultimately cost him his light heavyweight throne. Taking to the comments, the fans wrote, “Dude looked almost scared to trade and counter smh,” “Chama was scared,” “Poatan was way too cautious,” and “Poatan made his own loss with concern.”

Many others were of the opinion that while it is possible that the Brazilian warrior wasn’t scared, he definitely was a lot more defensive in his game. Going against a man who puts relentless pressure through his takedowns, fans believe Pereira was too focused on countering the takedown attempts that he forgot how to attack. They shared, “Defending the takedown is only worthy of reward when a fighter reverses,” “It’s not the ultimate defense championship,” and “Good for Alex to learn how to now solve this—no real damage—stopped all the 11 take downs and really didn’t seem hurt—but defense doesn’t win fights.”

But while most fans were talking about Alex Pereira’s unexpected performance, several took the opportunity to praise Joe Rogan for his in-depth analysis that actually made things a lot easier for fans to notice. As a result, they took the chance to praise the JRE host in the comments as they wrote, “Joe Rogan is the man and knows about fighting Magomed shut down Alex, plain and simple!” “I like it when UFC representatives like Joe who are always truthful and say facts,” and “Finally, Joe, you’re talking.” Well, it would be interesting to see how Alex Pereira gets over his defensive mindset if he gets an immediate rematch. What do you think? Will ‘Poatan’ be able to get back his throne? Let us know in the comments.