Alex Pereira is certainly keeping the door open for a potential move up a division in the near future.
Pereira is poised to make his fourth light heavyweight title defense as he headlines UFC 313 against Magomed Ankalaev. The highly anticipated showdown takes place this weekend at the iconic T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
“Poatan” made his UFC debut in 2021, and in just seven fights, he etched his name in the history books by capturing titles in two weight classes. The Brazilian powerhouse has openly expressed his ambition to claim championship gold in a third division.
During a recent interview with New York Post Sports, Pereira revealed that once he takes care of business against Ankalaev at UFC 313, the landscape at 205 pounds remains uncertain, but he already has plans brewing for his future.
“I’m not really sure who would be next in my division,” Pereira said through a translator. “So we could definitely start looking at, you know, maybe moving up to heavyweight, or who knows, maybe even going and doing a boxing match.”
The reigning UFC light heavyweight champion further explained that a potential move up in weight wouldn’t require major adjustments. He noted that he wouldn’t need to bulk up significantly, as he was already walking around at 235 pounds during his training camp for UFC 313
“I’d have to change very little,” Pereira said. “A couple weeks ago, I was weighing about 235 pounds, and that’s really heavy for me. I’m usually around 229, 230, but I think that would be a good weight for me to move up. It’s natural; the body, you get heavier and you get bigger as you age, so that’s what I see that’s been happening.”
On Sunday, “Poatan” posted a video on social media revealing that he weighed 227.5 pounds. With his title defense looming, he must shed 22.5 pounds to make the 205-pound limit by Friday morning.
Pereira most recently competed at UFC 307 last October, where he secured a fourth-round TKO victory over Khalil Rountree Jr., successfully defending his title.
He is currently on a five-fight win streak and has not lost a bout since transitioning to the light heavyweight division after dropping his middleweight title to Israel Adesanya at UFC 287 in April 2023.
