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Update: With his fourth-round defeat of Khalil Rountree through TKO at UFC 307, Alex Pereira finished action among my eight-part prepare for him to record a 3rd UFC title and end up being a battle sports GOAT. That’s not all he set in movement. He likewise addressed concerns about shortages in his video game that triggered me to question how well he ‘d do versus Tom Aspinall, he stated what I hoped he would when inquired about battling Dricus Du Plessis, and backstage, he informed Megan Olivi he ‘d do something that works completely for my fan-theorized plan.
He even won over the excellent Chael P. Sonnen, who believes Pereira is possibly somewhat ahead of the totally fabricated schedule I’ve set out for him. “He’s totally one-dimensional for a GOAT,” Sonnen stated on ESPN’s post-show following Poatan’s triumph. “I indicate, it’s simply kickboxing, it’s simply standup. There’s no foundation, there’s never ever been a takedown, there’s never ever been a defense of a submission, there’s never ever been a submission tossed up– and he simply may be the GOAT. He has actually reinvented the sport.”
Keep reading to see how MMA’s a lot of dominant kickboxing professional can take his skills to heavyweight and achieve something the majority of us, myself and Sonnen consisted of, are recently recognizing is possible.
There are some fascinating points of contrast when thinking about the increase of Alex Pereira. For one, his fame appears to the millions who’ve developed it, instead of something fans require to be encouraged of, unlike the expected appeal of the Sphere-headlining Sean O’Malley. He’s preserved a McGregor-esque climb while preventing comparable debates, left the shadow of Israel Adesanya without stooping to his level of immaturity, and end up being the most precious Brazilian fighter this side of José Aldo– all while making himself a two-division champ in a battle sport for the 2nd time, having actually initially done so in Glory Kickboxing before his relocation to MMA.
Approved, when fans and experts stop talking star power and begin talking about GOAT cases, arguments can be produced lots of other fighters ahead of Pereira. Leaders like Anderson Silva can hang their hats on history, the Demetrius Johnsons of the world can indicate their supremacy, and Jon Jones has his unbeaten streak on his side (and Dana White). After replicating his kickboxing success in a 2nd sport, Alex Pereira has something delegated do to before he can be consisted of amongst those greats: He needs to relocate to heavyweight and end up being the UFC’s very first three-division champ.
As the Light Heavyweight Champion prepares to protect his gold at UFC 307 versus Khalil Rountree, kept reading as I look previous his challenger, possibly dedicating a primary fight sport sin while doing so, and plot Poatan’s possible roadway to heavyweight splendor.
Picture: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC (Getty Images)
Update: Admittedly, this battle didn’t lead to the one-way traffic or one-punch knockout I believed it would.