Alex Pereira announced himself to the world when he knocked out Sean Strickland in 2022.
Pereira demolished Strickland before uncorking a nasty left hook that put the American down and out in the first round.
It was the day a Brazilian from Sao Paulo began his route to superstardom and eventual double champion status in Dana White’s promotion.
The frightening performance carved a path to UFC gold for Pereira that is still unfolding, and the fan-favourite has been digging his way to the top ever since.
Fast forward three years and Pereira is definitively UFC’s biggest star, having been named the promotion’s top-selling fighter in 2024.
However, his next test has been widely considered by many UFC fans as his toughest yet, and could set an important precedent for things to come.
‘Poatan’ headlines UFC 313 on March 9 against Magomed Ankalaev, defending his light heavyweight title for the fourth time in two years.
Since his victory over Strickland, Pereira has ruled the middleweight division twice, before cementing his name as the best in his current 205-pound division.
Ironically, Pereira is now a training partner of Strickland, but back in November 2022 at UFC 276 that was definitely not the case.
Ahead of their bout, Strickland had said his opponent’s striking ‘sucked’, but it took him just 156 seconds to find out the opposite.
Strickland put the pressure on Pereira early at the beginning of the fight as ‘Poatan’ sought to find an opening from the outside.
Pereira remained patient and weathered the storm and looked to be getting much more comfortable as the clock ticked on.
Two minutes of round one had gone by and neither fighter had landed any significant damage.
Then, out of nowhere, Pereira dropped Strickland with his signature lead left hook that sent the American crashing to the canvas.
As Strickland attempted to get back to his feet, he ate a straight right hand that knocked him right back down to the floor and brought an end to the fight.
“You cannot stand in front of that man, the power is different. It’s extraordinary,” UFC commentator Joe Rogan said as Strickland stumbled around the octagon.
“People think they get it, but this guy does that to the best kickboxers on planet earth,” Rogan added.
“And that’s his signature technique. The thing about him is that he’s got that nuclear option, you cannot make a mistake and Sean Strickland decided he was just going to stand right in front of him.
“He just leans in and gets you thinking that you’re alright standing in front of him and then just torques that right on the chin.”
Slow motion replays had the Las Vegas crowd squirming, as they showed Pereira whack Strickland with his powerful left hand.
The American was the number four ranked middleweight at the time and Pereira was unranked.
But there was a quick reshuffle in the 185 lb division, as the latter was then awarded an immediate title shot.
After eating his own words at UFC 276, Strickland took to social media to react to the devastating defeat, while giving props to his opponent who had clearly earned his respect.
“Well, that sucked,” Strickland said. “You never want to be someone’s highlight, but that’s the game we play. I tried to stand and bang with one of the best kickboxers.
Alex Pereira in 2024
Knockouts for fun
Win over Khalil Rountree Jr at UFC 307 on October 5 via fourth-round knockout
Win over Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303 on June 29 via second-round head kick knockout
Win over Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 on April 13 via first-round knockout
“The s****** part about it was, during the round, I kept thinking: ‘Man, this is going to be an easy fight.
“I see everything this guy’s throwing, I’m getting the better of the exchanges. I’m going to beat this guy up for three rounds.’
“And then halfway through, I got caught. Hat’s off to Alex. He’s a f***ing killer.”
Pereira twice beat Israel Adesanya before both men transitioned to MMA and went on to defeat the Nigerian-born New Zealander to win the UFC middleweight title in his next fight.
Adesanya knocked Pereira out in the rematch, before ‘Poatan’ moved up to the light heavyweight division and beat Jan Blachowicz.
Almost exactly a year after he won the middleweight strap, Pereira stopped Jiri Prochazka to win gold in the 205 lb division.
The Brazilian then defended his title against Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, Prochazka again and Khalil Rountree Jr in a dominating, impressive 2024.
He has mentioned moving up a division again to fight UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, but has Russian submission specialist Ankalaev to worry about first.
Pereira and Ankalaev headline UFC 313, where Justin Gaethje, Jalin Turner, King Green and Amanda Lemos will all take centre stage on the main card.
