Alex Pereira should face Tom Aspinall in his next UFC fight (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via ... [+]
Alex Pereira has his sights set on becoming the first three-division UFC champ in promotional history. With UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones on the bench and interim UFC heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall looking for a fight, it makes sense for Pereira to face Aspinall for UFC (interim) gold sooner rather than later.
Pereira, a two-division Glory Kickboxing champion before transitioning to MMA full-time in late 2019, won the UFC middleweight crown in his eighth pro MMA bout, knocking out Israel Adesanya in the fifth round of their November 2022 meeting. Adesanya regained the title in an April 2023 rematch, knocking out Pereira in the second stanza.
After that loss, Pereira moved to light heavyweight. In his first fight at 205 pounds, Pereira won a split decision over former UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz. In November 2023, Pereira claimed the vacant UFC light heavyweight crown, knocking out ex-champ Jiri Prochazka in the second round. On Saturday, in the main event of UFC 300, Pereira defended that title, knocking out another ex-UFC champ, Jamahal Hill, in the first round.
After his win at UFC 300, Pereira stood in the Octagon and with the light heavyweight belt draped over his shoulder, told UFC commentator Joe Rogan that he wanted a fight at heavyweight.
Following the fight, Aspinall posted an image of himself glaring at Pereira as the light heavyweight titleholder prepared to step into the Octagon at UFC 300.
Pereira, who did not give a name of who he wants to fight at heavyweight, was asked about Aspinall’s post at the UFC 300 post-fight press conference.
“I don’t know man, only he can respond to that,” Pereira said through an interpreter. “When I said I want to fight at heavyweight, I’m not going to give names right here. I told them I want to fight at heavyweight, so whoever they choose.”
Aspinall won the interim heavyweight crown in November with a knockout of Sergei Pavlovich. The UFC created the current version of the interim title after UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones tore his pectoral muscle while training for a November matchup against ex-UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic. Jones has undergone surgery to repair the injury, but the UFC has not booked his return fight. The expectation is that his next contest will be against Miocic, not a title unification bout against Aspinall.
When asked about a possible move to heavyweight for Pereira, UFC CEO Dana White did not seem enthused about the idea.
“When you think about him moving up to heavyweight – you’ve got (Jon) Jones, you’ve got Aspinall and the list goes on and on in that heavyweight division,” White said. “Heavyweight division is nasty.
“I don’t know if that’s the right move for him. He looked damn good tonight in the division he’s in, so I think he might want to stick around there for a minute. But I don’t know. These are all things that we’ll talk about.”
Under normal circumstances, I would agree with White that Pereira should stay at light heavyweight. However, the champ is now 3-0 in the division, with his three wins coming against three of the four men who held the UFC light heavyweight crown before he did. The only recent ex-champ Pereira hasn’t faced is his training partner, Glover Teixeira.
The next logical fight for Pereira at light heavyweight, who suffered a broken toe ahead of UFC 300 and will need time to recover, is No. 2 ranked Magomed Ankalaev, which is an acceptable fight, but not one that would move the needle like a bout where Pereira attempts to become the first fighter to win UFC gold at three weights.
A fight against Aspinall is an easily promotable scrap that would draw eyes and pay-per-view buys. It would also keep the top of the heavyweight division moving while the UFC waits for Jones to return to action.
Pereira’s team seems very interested in the matchup and might even be trying to bait Aspinall into accepting a fight for his interim crown.
“I don’t think [fighting Pereira] is a good idea for Aspinall at this moment,” Pereira’s manager Jorge Guimarães told MMA Fighting. “We have to see what’s going to happen. I think it’s still too premature. Aspinall is the interim champion, why would he risk fighting ‘Poatan’? I don’t think it makes much sense [for Aspinall], I don’t think it’s a good idea [for Aspinall]. For us, it is [a good idea].”
The UFC likes to claim it makes the fights fans want to see. The Pereira vs. Aspinall matchup is one the fans want to see, the UFC should make it happen.
