The UFC has reportedly turned to a familiar face in Alex Pereira after losing its headline attraction for the final pay-per-view event of the year.
Reports emerged on Thursday regarding a potential injury suffered by UFC Welterweight Champion Belal Muhammad, who was booked to headline UFC 310 in Las Vegas on Dec. 7 in defense of his title against Shavkat Rakhmonov.
“Remember the Name” subsequently confirmed the disappointing news on social media, posting an image of a gruesome bone infection that hospitalized him and will keep him out of training for the next six weeks.
With that, the promotion will need to secure a new headline matchup to close out its PPV schedule for 2024. And when it comes to saviors, no one has fit the description in 2024 quite like “Poatan.”
Pereira, a former UFC middleweight champion and the reigning light heavyweight kingpin, has had a bumper year inside the Octagon, reeling off three straight title defenses in record-breaking speed to establish himself as one of the sport’s biggest stars.
The manner of his first two defenses only added to the plaudits thrown his way, with Pereira saving the promotion after a struggle to secure a suitable UFC 300 main event and the withdrawal of Conor McGregor from UFC 303 less than three months later.
Having added the name of Khalil Rountree to his reign’s list of victims at UFC 307 earlier this month, it appeared that Pereira would finally be due a long-earned rest.
While that still might be the case, MMA Mania is reporting that “Poatan” has indeed been contacted about headlining UFC 310 against Magomed Ankalaev in light of Muhammad vs. Rakhmonov being off.
The welterweight number one contender seemingly has something to say about that, however. After wishing his injured opponent well on X, “Nomad” called to remain on the UFC 310 card in competition for an interim welterweight strap.
It remains to be seen whether Muhammad will be out for long enough to warrant the creation of another belt. But should no other options come to fruition for the Dec. 7 headline slot, the promotion has previously shown a willingness to add interim belts to the equation in such scenarios.
