Alex Pereira | |
---|---|
![]() Pereira in 2021 | |
Born | Alexsandro Pereira 7 July 1987 São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brazil |
Other names | Poatan |
Nationality | Brazilian |
Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) |
Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) |
Division | Middleweight (MMA, Kickboxing) Light heavyweight (MMA, Kickboxing) Cruiserweight (Boxing) |
Reach | 79 in (200 cm)[1] |
Stance | Orthodox |
Fighting out of | Bethel, Connecticut, United States |
Team | Teixeira MMA & Fitness (2020–present)[2][3] |
Trainer | Vinicius Reviravolta, Glover Teixeira |
Rank | Black belt in Kickboxing[4] Brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Plínio Cruz[5] |
Years active | 2010–present (kickboxing) 2015–present (MMA)[3] |
Professional boxing record | |
Total | 1 |
Wins | 1 |
By knockout | 1 |
Losses | 0 |
Kickboxing record | |
Total | 40 |
Wins | 33 |
By knockout | 21 |
Losses | 7 |
By knockout | 2 |
Mixed martial arts record | |
Total | 8 |
Wins | 7 |
By knockout | 6 |
By decision | 1 |
Losses | 1 |
By submission | 1 |
Other information | |
Boxing record from BoxRec | |
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Last updated on: 23 November 2020 |
Alexsandro Pereira (born 7 July 1987) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and former kickboxer.[6] He currently competes in the Middleweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the UFC Middleweight Champion. In kickboxing, he is a former Glory middleweight and light heavyweight champion, and is the first and only fighter to have held Glory titles in two weight classes simultaneously. Pereira also competed in promotions such as It's Showtime and SUPERKOMBAT Fighting Championship. As of November 14, 2022, he is ranked #8 on the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings.[7]
Pereira was ranked #1 in the kickboxing middleweight and light-heavyweight rankings as of February 2021.[8]
Growing up in a favela, Pereira dropped out of middle school to begin working in a tire shop at the age of 12.[9] Influenced by his colleagues, he began drinking and eventually became an alcoholic.[9] In 2009 he began training kickboxing in order to get rid of his addiction.[10]
He won the Glory 14: Zagreb - Middleweight Contender Tournament in Zagreb, Croatia on 8 March 2014, beating Dustin Jacoby by first-round knockout in the semi-finals and Sahak Parparyan by majority decision in the final.[11][12]
It was announced during the Glory 15: Istanbul broadcast that Pereira would be one of eight fighters competing in the Glory 17: Los Angeles - Last Man Standing middleweight tournament in Inglewood, California, United States on 21 June 2014.[13][14] He lost to eventual champion Artem Levin by unanimous decision in the quarter-finals to exit the tournament.[15][16][17]
He was scheduled to fight a rematch with César Almeida during WGP Kickboxing 25 for the vacant belt WGP Middleweight title. He defeated Almeida by decision.[18] He defended his WGP KB title with a second-round KO of Maycon Silva at WGP KB 40.[19]
In his next five fights, Pereira went on a 4–1 run, losing only to the pound for pound great Artur Kyshenko.[20] During this run Pereira achieved his most famous victories, defeating the future UFC Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya twice: once by unanimous decision, and once by a counter left hook KO.[21][22][23]
Pereira won the Glory Middleweight title with a unanimous decision win against Simon Marcus at Glory 46: China.[24]
Pereira met Yousri Belgaroui at the Glory 40 and Glory 49 Superfight Series,[25][26] and then in 2018 in New York Madison Square Garden at the Glory 55 for the Middleweight Title Match, where Belgaroui had received the overhand right knockout at 2:29 of Round 1.[27][28] For Pereira, it was the 28th career victory and the sixth inside the Glory ring.[25]
In November 2018, Pereira said he would pursue MMA career after his contract with Glory will expire in April 2019.[29] Eventually, Pereira re-signed with Glory with possibility to fight in the mixed martial arts also.[30]
After four straight successful Glory middleweight title defenses (against Yousri Belgaroui, Simon Marcus and Jason Wilnis),[31][32][33] Pereira moved up to fight Donegi Abena for the interim Glory Light Heavyweight Championship at Glory 68. Pereira won the fight via knockout in the third round, becoming the first double champion in Glory history.[34]
After winning the Light Heavyweight Championship, Pereira opted to defend his middleweight title against Ertugrul Bayrak at Glory Collision 2 on 21 December 2019. After largely dominating the first round, he won the bout via knockout at the end of the round.[35]
Pereira was scheduled to challenge Artem Vakhitov for the Glory Light Heavyweight title at Glory 77.[36] Pereira won the fight by split decision, becoming the first fighter in GLORY history to simultaneously hold two belts at the same time.[37]
Pereira was later stripped of his Middleweight title.[38]
Pereira rematched Artem Vakhitov at Glory 78: Rotterdam in his first title defense.[39][40] He lost the rematch by majority decision. Pereira was deducted one point in round 4 due to repeated clinching, which was seen by many as a controversial decision by the referee.[41]
Transitioning from kickboxing, Pereira made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2015 at Jungle Fight 82 against Quemuel Ottoni , losing the fight via submission.[42][43] He continued at Jungle Fight where subsequently racking up two straight victories against Marcelo Cruz and Marcus Vinicius Silveira, with a KO and TKO respectively. Pereira announced he had signed a contract to face Diego Henrique da Silva in the Brazilian edition of Dana White's Contender Series on August 10, 2018.[44] However, the bout never materialized as Glory did not permit Pereira to compete.[45]
On October 22, 2020, news surfaced that Pereira had signed a contract with Legacy Fighting Alliance and he then made his promotional debut against Thomas Powell on November 20, 2020.[46] He won the fight via knockout in round one.[47]
On September 3, 2021, Pereira signed with the UFC. He made his promotional debut against Andreas Michailidis on November 6, 2021, at UFC 268.[48] He won the fight via technical knock out in round two.[49] This win earned him a Performance of the Night award.[50]
Pereira faced Bruno Silva on March 12, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 203.[51] Pereira outstruck Silva for all three rounds and won the fight via unanimous decision.[52]
Pereira was scheduled to face Sean Strickland on July 30, 2022, at UFC 277.[53] However, the promotion decided to move the pairing to UFC 276 on July 2, 2022.[54] Pereira won the fight after knocking Strickland out in the first round.[55] This win earned him a Performance of the Night award,[56] and Crypto.com Fan Bonus of the Night third place award which paid in bitcoin of US$10,000.[57]
Pereira faced Israel Adesanya for the UFC Middleweight Championship on November 12, 2022, at UFC 281.[58] He won the bout via technical knockout in the fifth round.[59] This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.[60]
Alex Pereira is indigenous Brazilian being of the Pataxó tribe.[9] Because of this, his nickname is Alex "Poatan" Pereira,[61] in the Tupi–Guarani language, "Poatan" means "Stone Hands".[62] The nickname was given by his first kickboxing trainer Belocqua Wera, who was also responsible for helping Pereira discover his indigenous ancestry.[63]
He has a younger sister, Aline Pereira, who competes for Glory[64] and did her MMA debut on November 18, 2022.[65]
Professional
Amateur
Awards
8 matches | 7 wins | 1 loss |
By knockout | 6 | 0 |
By submission | 0 | 1 |
By decision | 1 | 0 |
Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 7–1 | Israel Adesanya | TKO (punches) | UFC 281 | 12 November 2022 | 5 | 2:01 | New York City, New York, United States | Won the UFC Middleweight Championship. Performance of the Night. |
Win | 6–1 | Sean Strickland | KO (punches) | UFC 276 | 2 July 2022 | 1 | 2:36 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Performance of the Night. |
Win | 5–1 | Bruno Silva | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Ankalaev | 12 March 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
Win | 4–1 | Andreas Michailidis | TKO (flying knee and punches) | UFC 268 | 6 November 2021 | 2 | 0:18 | New York City, New York, United States | Performance of the Night. |
Win | 3–1 | Thomas Powell | KO (punch) | LFA 95 | 20 November 2020 | 1 | 4:04 | Park City, Kansas, United States | |
Win | 2–1 | Marcus Vinicius da Silveira | TKO (punches) | Jungle Fight 87 | 21 May 2016 | 2 | 4:55 | São Paulo, Brazil | |
Win | 1–1 | Marcelo Cruz | KO (punches) | Jungle Fight 85 | 23 January 2016 | 1 | 4:07 | São Paulo, Brazil | |
Loss | 0–1 | Quemuel Ottoni | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Jungle Fight 82 | 24 October 2015 | 3 | 2:52 | São Paulo, Brazil | Middleweight debut. |
33 wins (21 KOs), 7 losses (2 KOs) | ||||||||
Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Location | Method | Round | Time | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2021-09-04 | Loss | ![]() |
Glory 78: Rotterdam | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Decision (Majority) | 5 | 3:00 | |
Loses the Glory Light Heavyweight Championship. | ||||||||
2021-01-30 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 77: Rotterdam | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Decision (Split) | 5 | 3:00 | |
Wins the Glory Light Heavyweight Championship. | ||||||||
2019-12-21 | Win | ![]() |
Glory Collision 2 | Arnhem, Netherlands | KO (Left Hook) | 1 | 3:00 | |
Defends the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2019-09-28 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 68: Miami | Miami, United States | KO (Left Hook) | 3 | 2:08 | |
Wins the interim Glory Light Heavyweight Championship. | ||||||||
2019-05-17 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 65: Utrecht | Utrecht, Netherlands | KO (Left Flying Knee) | 1 | 1:31 | |
Defends the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2018-09-14 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 58: Chicago | Chicago, United States | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
Defends the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2018-07-20 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 55: New York | New York, United States | KO (Right Hook) | 1 | 2:16 | |
Defends the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2017-12-09 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 49: Rotterdam | Rotterdam, Netherlands | TKO (Doctor Stopage) | 3 | 1:54 | |
Defends the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2017-10-14 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 46: China | Guangzhou, China | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
Wins the Glory Middleweight Championship. | ||||||||
2017-09-16 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 40[70] | Paraná, Brazil | KO (Left Hook) | 2 | 2:00 | |
Defends the WGP Kickboxing -85 kg title.[71] | ||||||||
2017-04-29 | Loss | ![]() |
Glory 40: Copenhagen, Final | Copenhagen, Denmark | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
2017-04-29 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 40: Copenhagen, Semi Final | Copenhagen, Denmark | TKO (Right Hook) | 3 | 1:42 | |
2017-03-04 | Win | ![]() |
Glory of Heroes 7 | Sao Paulo, Brazil | KO (Left Hook) | 3 | N/A | |
2016-07-31 | Loss | ![]() |
Kunlun Fight 48 | Jining, China | TKO (Punches) | 2 | 2:55 | |
2016-05-08 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 30 | Brazil | KO (Right Hook) | 4 | N/A | |
2016-04-02 | Win | ![]() |
Glory of Heroes 1 | China | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | N/A | |
2015-07-25 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 25[72] | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision | 5 | 3:00 | |
Wins the vacant WGP Kickboxing -85 kg title.[71] | ||||||||
2015-04-03 | Loss | ![]() |
Glory 20: Dubai - Middleweight Contender Tournament, Semi Finals | Dubai, UAE | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
2014-12-20 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 24 | São Paulo, Brazil | TKO (Three Knockdowns) | 2 | N/A | |
2014-09-27 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 22 [73] | Brazil | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
2014-06-21 | Loss | ![]() |
Glory 17: Los Angeles - Middleweight Last Man Standing Tournament, Quarter Finals | Inglewood, California, USA | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
2014-04-26 | Win | ![]() |
WGP SUPER 4 [74] | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
2014-03-08 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 14: Zagreb - Middleweight Contender Tournament, Final | Zagreb, Croatia | Decision (Majority) | 3 | 3:00 | |
Wins the Glory Middleweight Contender Tournament. | ||||||||
2014-03-08 | Win | ![]() |
Glory 14: Zagreb - Middleweight Contender Tournament, Semi Finals | Zagreb, Croatia | KO (Left Hook) | 1 | 2:02 | |
2013-12-21 | Loss | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 17, Final | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision | 3 | N/A | |
2013-12-21 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 17, Semi Final | São Paulo, Brazil | KO (Right Knee) | 1 | N/A | |
2013-08-24 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 15 | São Paulo, Brazil | KO (Right Cross) | 2 | N/A | |
Wins the WAKO Pro Panamerican -85 kg/187 lb Championship K-1 Rules. | ||||||||
2013-03-23 | Win | ![]() |
SUPERKOMBAT New Heroes 2 | São Caetano, Brazil | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | N/A | |
2012-11-10 | Loss | ![]() |
It's Showtime 60 | São Paulo, Brazil | TKO (Retirement) | 2 | N/A | |
Fight was for vacant It's Showtime 85MAX Championship. | ||||||||
2012-09-16 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing 9 | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | N/A | |
2012-07-07 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing, Final | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision | 3 | N/A | |
Wins the WGP Kickboxing -85 kg title.[75][76] | ||||||||
2012-07-07 | Win | ![]() |
WGP Kickboxing, Semi finals | São Paulo, Brazil | KO | 1 | N/A | |
2012-03-31 | Win | ![]() |
Jungle Fight 37 | São Paulo, Brazil | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | N/A | |
Wins the Brazilian -85 kg/187 lb Championship K-1 Rules. |
Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Location | Method | Round | Time | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013-10 | Loss | ![]() |
W.A.K.O World Championships 2013, K-1 Final -91 kg | Guaruja, Brasil | Decision | 3 | 2:00 | |
Wins W.A.K.O. World Championship '13 K-1 Silver Medal -91 kg. | ||||||||
2013-10 | Win | ![]() |
W.A.K.O World Championships 2013, K-1 Semi Finals -91 kg | Guaruja, Brasil | Decision (Split) | 3 | 2:00 | |
2013-10 | Win | ![]() |
W.A.K.O World Championships 2013, K-1 Quarter Finals -91 kg | Guaruja, Brasil | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
Legend: Win Loss Draw/No contest Notes |
1 fight | 1 win | 0 losses |
---|---|---|
By knockout | 1 | 0 |
No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Win | 1–0 | ![]() |
TKO | 3 (4) | Jun 17, 2017 | ![]() |
Presented content of the Wikipedia article was extracted in 2022-11-25 based on https://en.wikipedia.org/?curid=42031348