Update: With his fourth-round defeat of Khalil Rountree via TKO at UFC 307, Alex Pereira completed step one of my eight-part plan for him to capture a third UFC title and become a combat sports GOAT. But that’s not all he set in motion. He also answered questions about deficiencies in his game that caused me to doubt how well he’d do against Tom Aspinall, he said what I hoped he would when asked about fighting Dricus Du Plessis, and backstage, he told Megan Olivi he’d do something that works perfectly for my fan-theorized scheme.
He even won over the great Chael P. Sonnen, who thinks Pereira is perhaps slightly ahead of the entirely made-up schedule I’ve laid out for him. “He’s completely one-dimensional for a GOAT,” Sonnen said on ESPN’s post-show following Poatan’s victory. “I mean, it’s just kickboxing, it’s just standup. There’s no groundwork, there’s never been a takedown, there’s never been a defense of a submission, there’s never been a submission thrown up—and he just might be the GOAT. He has revolutionized the sport.”
Read on to see how MMA’s most dominant kickboxing specialist can take his talents to heavyweight and accomplish something most of us, myself and Sonnen included, are just now realizing is possible.
There are some interesting points of comparison when considering the rise of Alex Pereira. For one, his stardom is apparent to the millions who’ve built it, rather than something fans need to be convinced of, unlike the supposed popularity of the Sphere-headlining Sean O’Malley. Moreover, he’s maintained a McGregor-esque ascent while avoiding similar controversies, escaped the shadow of Israel Adesanya without stooping to his level of immaturity, and become the most beloved Brazilian fighter this side of José Aldo—all while making himself a two-division champion in a combat sport for the second time, having first done so in Glory Kickboxing before his move to MMA.
Granted, when fans and pundits stop talking star power and start discussing GOAT cases, arguments can be made for many other fighters ahead of Pereira. Pioneers like Anderson Silva can hang their hats on history, the Demetrius Johnsons of the world can point to their dominance, and Jon Jones has his unbeaten streak on his side (and Dana White). After duplicating his kickboxing success in a second sport, Alex Pereira has one thing left to do to before he can be included among those greats: He has to move to heavyweight and become the UFC’s first three-division champion.
As the Light Heavyweight Champion prepares to defend his gold at UFC 307 against Khalil Rountree, read on as I look past his opponent, perhaps committing a cardinal combat sport sin in the process, and plot Poatan’s potential road to heavyweight glory.