One of the most engaging stories in the world of MMA has been the rivalry between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya which spanned from their days in kickboxing to the UFC’s Octagon. Now, ‘Poatan’ has found himself in the cross-hairs of his nemesis who is hoping to accomplish the same feat as the Brazilian!

Artem Vakhitov, a two-time Glory Light Heavyweight Champion has recently indicated that he is gunning for Pereira’s crown in the UFC. In a recent interview with MMAFighting, Vakhitov stated, “MMA was always interesting for me anyway, but obviously I am very motivated by the prospect of getting that trilogy match with Pereira.” It sounds like a showdown is brewing between them again, so let’s dive in and explore all we know about Vakhitov’s kickboxing career, his team, and the story between him and Alex Pereira!

Artem Vakhitov’s Kickboxing record and Glory!

Artem Vakhitov was born in Prokopyevsk, Russia in 1991. Vakhitov’s journey in combat sports started under his father’s watchful eye at just 5 years old, and by the time he turned 6, he was already training in karate. Vakhitov then continued to train for five years until his family had to move to the city, forcing him to pause his karate education.

But that wasn’t the end of his martial arts story. He soon found a new home at the Kuzbass Muay Thai gym, where he trained under the famous striking coach Vitaly Miller, wherein he crossed paths with Artem Levin, aka ‘The Lion,’ a former Glory Middleweight Champion. Sparring with Levin enabled Vakhitov to sharpen his skills significantly and was an instrumental factor in his rise in the sport of kickboxing.

Vakhitov’s first professional fight was at the ‘Souboj Titanu’ tournament in the Czech Republic in 2009, where he impressively made it to the finals. After gaining experience in various kickboxing organizations, he made his debut for Glory in 2013 at ‘Glory 9’ in New York City.

His skills as an elite striker quickly made him stand out from the competition and he rattled off a series of wins before suffering his first loss under the Glory banner to Saulo Cavalari at Glory 20 in 2015 via a split decision.  But Vakhitov wouldn’t be deterred as he would get a shot at redemption against Cavalari at Glory 28 a year later where he would avenge his loss and win the Glory Light Heavyweight title in the process.

The Russian held on to the title till Glory 77 in 2021, where he would lose it to the man he is now chasing in MMA after compiling a kickboxing professional career record of 23-6! 

Alex Pereira vs. Artem Vakhitov: the beef!

During his interview with MMAFighting, Artem Vakhitov stated about Alex Pereira, “We are 1-1 against each other, so the next fight will be the trilogy fight and I think that will be a big fight for fans all over the world.”

For those unaware, the two have a history in kickboxing that began when Alex Pereira ended Vakhitov’s streak of 5 title defenses of his light heavyweight crown at Glory 77 in 2021. The fight was a back-and-forth affair with both men putting on a masterclass of high-level kickboxing on display for the fans but ultimately ‘Poatan’ walked away with a split decision victory on the night and took home Vakhitov’s belt too.

The fight was such a closely contested affair that Vakhitov demanded an immediate rematch which was granted by the promotion and scheduled them to run it back at Glory 78 in the same year. This time, Vakhitov secured a majority decision victory over ‘Poatan’ and successfully took his title back from the Brazilian. 

However, there was also controversy in the fight as Pereira faced a one-point deduction during round 4 due to excessive clinching which was deemed controversial by several onlookers. It’s also important to note that this was also Alex Pereira’s final fight in kickboxing before he made his move to MMA.

The adjustments made between the first and second fight were a testament to Vakhitov’s preparation and his team’s skills in training their fighter. So, let’s take a look at the people behind the Russian’s incredible success in combat sports!

Kickboxing star’s coaches? Was he trained by Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman?

Artem Vakhitov’s striking coach has been Vitaly Miller since his early days in kickboxing and he has been training out of the Kuzbass Muay Thai gym in his home country of Russia. However, for his transition to MMA, Vakhitov has made his way to the ‘Kill Cliff FC’ gym in Florida where he is currently training.

The gym was founded in 2017 by Henri Hooft and Greg Jones and has trained notable names in the UFC like Kamaru Usman, Michael Chandler, Luke Rockhold, and Robbie Lawler. Another crucial addition to Vakhitov’s team has been Henry Cejudo, the former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion, also known as ‘Triple C’!

In a recent video shared on social media, Cejudo was spotted with Vakhitov and stated, “So guys…allow me to introduce you guys to who’s training with the ‘Triple C’ next, I train the best in the world but guess what? Now I got the six-time Glory world champ, the last guy to defeat Alex Pereira, and we have a message for you! ”

Was Artem Vakhitov signed by the UFC?

At the time of writing, Artem Vakhitov hasn’t been signed by the UFC but has made his intentions clear about pursuing a trilogy bout with Alex Pereira. Vakhitov is currently 2-1 in professional MMA as in his debut at Open FC 31 in 2023, he suffered a dislocated elbow in the first round and lost the bout via technical knockout due to the injury.

He rebounded by finishing his next 2 opponents in the first round and is now gunning for the Pereira fight under the UFC’s banner. In a statement made to MMAJunkie, Vakhitov stated, “Watch our two fights in GLORY Kickboxing and then imagine we are in the UFC Octagon with small gloves on, and I’ll be very confident for that fight.”

In conclusion, as Vakhitov continues to pursue his goal, the prospect of a trilogy fight between these two titans is not just a personal quest for Vakhitov but also has the potential to be one of the best displays of elite striking ever seen inside the Octagon. As of now, it remains to be seen if this rivalry will re-ignite on the grand stage of the UFC for fans of combat sports all over the globe!