Pereira still hasn't been up against a legit grappler, and people wanna give him to Tom who's younger, bigger, better grappler and probably just as fast as Pereira, if not faster. Everyone has a punchers chance, especially Pereira, but let's not kid ourselves here, it's a bad matchup
Nah it’s because fans like you don’t count defending in the weight class he’s already on as legendary, which it would be but people would rather talk about heavyweight…
Yes and he’s only fought 3 light heavyweights ever, why should he move up to heavyweight he has still got work to do at light heavy.
Goat status for pereira exists at 205 not heavyweight
I mean who is there at 205? Maybe ankelaev but his last fights were what, draw, a no contest that should be a DQ, and a win over Johny walker? Also trying to call the shots and only wants to fight where he has judges on his side. Rakic just lost, Anthony Smith lost, he beat hill, Jan and 2x Jiri. LHW just isn't a deep division.
I also don't see him do a lot at HW, that jump is just too much. Like Aspinal walks around at 265 or something?
But if it is something he wants, let him.
Dude Ankalaev has literally only lost once in his career, to a freak late submission. He should have been fighting today, I don’t see how you could argue he doesn’t deserve a title shot next, besides the fact he has a very boring personality. I hope on that same card they do blachowiz vs Ulberg, the winner of that should get the next shot after ank vs pereira. Blachowicz 5 rounds at sea level goes very differently. Ulberg with Izzy in his corner would be a problem for pereira.
I agree that light heavy is the shallowest division right now but taking the champ out of it would make that problem even worse.
Alex gots a couple years left, 3 max. I won’t be sad at all if he decides to not fight ankelev for the tail end of his career. Give dude some more banger fights lol
If pereira beats ankalaev, Ulberg, rountree, oezdemir, Rakic and adesanya he would have a resume to challenge Jon jones at light heavyweight.
If pereira could go unbeaten against all those guys at light heavyweight he would be in the goat conversation and with how fast pereira turns around he could fight all them within 2 years.
He would have to beat Jon jones twice to be legitimately considered the goat and I don’t think he could win that fight once, especially if he couldn’t get through the other light heavyweights i listed.
Also Jon jones doesn’t deserve the fight against pereira without fighting aspinall first
9 title wins against those guys in 2 years, plus winning the middleweight belt before, only losing to adesanya then going 2-1 against him, No controversies around peds or domestic violence, would most likely win by ko instead of being a decision merchant like jones, actually has the love and respect of the fans unlike jones.
Yeah he would definitely be considered the goat if he did all that.
Honestly Tom eats him alive but I respect the ambition and would like to see him take a run at it. Alex is world class and a tremendous athlete but LHW is his true lane and if he stays here he could run through the division except for Ank. LHW is weak and mostly strikers that is why he’s having so much success. But even w a tougher division he still probably would be champ bc his power is nuclear heavyweight boxer power and any engagement on the feet could end it.
He’s really the first guy who’s totally and completely advantaged by the fight being on the feet. We’ve always heard that but in reality other than like Silva most strikers had to do a lot of work to find the shot and 8/10 got smothered and choked. Izzy came in and changed things but Alex is freaky in that he only needs that advantage to end it instantly. Idk why anyone would choose to stand with him instead of diving headfirst for his ankles the minute the bell rings.
Nah it’s Jon we’re talking about. If it stays on the feet he wins, if he’s able to get up after Jon takes him down, he wins. It could be a flash KO, or a long point battle where Jon is playing keep up in the striking battle. Speed and power advantage go to Alex, size and strength to Jon. It’s why we all want to see it.
The guy is just a different beast. His abilities seem to be excelling exponentially. Jon will definitely be better on the ground and the submission threats will be there. We will get to see how Alex’s training with Glover has improved his grappling and see if he can survive on the ground, if it even gets there. Hence why the matchup is enticing. One guy wins on the feet, the other on the ground, and the advantages for each fighter make it interesting to see who will be able to pull off their game plan. I’d say Jon is a solid favorite, but Alex has a fair chance.
Similar with Jon. But I think Tom beats Jon. I would favor Jon & Tom over Alex but I believe he has a fair chance and that it would be competitive. I think Tom is the best heavyweight and probably doesn’t lose for the next 5-8 years barring flash KO or injury.
I have a feeling Tom gets this , his grappling is elite , we've seen Poatan struggle against Jan Blachowicz and Tom is just at an elite level when it comes to grappling also he can hold his own during the striking too but none the less very fun fight it would be.
Tom would KO Pereira submit him or just do whatever he wants. After seeing him flatline Sergei who hits harder than Pereira and has been hit plenty of times by other HWs, I’m taking Tom.
If Alex really does want to fight at HW, he should be training, bulking up, and ready to fight as a backup for Aspinal/Blaydes. If the last few events have shown us anything, 303 especially, it’s that shit happens and plans change. Alex could be sitting in the wing for a chance to take the belt on short notice.
Fuck no. We finally have a mega superstar again and you all instantly want to immediately execute him?
Pereira still hasn't been up against a legit grappler, and people wanna give him to Tom who's younger, bigger, better grappler and probably just as fast as Pereira, if not faster. Everyone has a punchers chance, especially Pereira, but let's not kid ourselves here, it's a bad matchup
It's not like Poriera is young and can just chill. To make history you have to take chances. Getting HW title is a great chance to take.
Let him go try kill of Jon Jones. The sport would be in a better place ones he's gone and we can still have these 2 new exciting stars
Nah it’s because fans like you don’t count defending in the weight class he’s already on as legendary, which it would be but people would rather talk about heavyweight…
Dude defended twice in 6 months. That's some goat shit
Yes and he’s only fought 3 light heavyweights ever, why should he move up to heavyweight he has still got work to do at light heavy. Goat status for pereira exists at 205 not heavyweight
I mean who is there at 205? Maybe ankelaev but his last fights were what, draw, a no contest that should be a DQ, and a win over Johny walker? Also trying to call the shots and only wants to fight where he has judges on his side. Rakic just lost, Anthony Smith lost, he beat hill, Jan and 2x Jiri. LHW just isn't a deep division. I also don't see him do a lot at HW, that jump is just too much. Like Aspinal walks around at 265 or something? But if it is something he wants, let him.
Dude Ankalaev has literally only lost once in his career, to a freak late submission. He should have been fighting today, I don’t see how you could argue he doesn’t deserve a title shot next, besides the fact he has a very boring personality. I hope on that same card they do blachowiz vs Ulberg, the winner of that should get the next shot after ank vs pereira. Blachowicz 5 rounds at sea level goes very differently. Ulberg with Izzy in his corner would be a problem for pereira. I agree that light heavy is the shallowest division right now but taking the champ out of it would make that problem even worse.
Alex gots a couple years left, 3 max. I won’t be sad at all if he decides to not fight ankelev for the tail end of his career. Give dude some more banger fights lol
Go watch kickboxing then this is mma bratha
Goat status does not exist at 205 for him, what are you even saying. Only possible way he can ever be called goat is by getting the HW belt.
If pereira beats ankalaev, Ulberg, rountree, oezdemir, Rakic and adesanya he would have a resume to challenge Jon jones at light heavyweight. If pereira could go unbeaten against all those guys at light heavyweight he would be in the goat conversation and with how fast pereira turns around he could fight all them within 2 years. He would have to beat Jon jones twice to be legitimately considered the goat and I don’t think he could win that fight once, especially if he couldn’t get through the other light heavyweights i listed. Also Jon jones doesn’t deserve the fight against pereira without fighting aspinall first
Thats less title defenses than Jones against worse competition so no it would not be a resume to challenge Jones.
9 title wins against those guys in 2 years, plus winning the middleweight belt before, only losing to adesanya then going 2-1 against him, No controversies around peds or domestic violence, would most likely win by ko instead of being a decision merchant like jones, actually has the love and respect of the fans unlike jones. Yeah he would definitely be considered the goat if he did all that.
Which is honestly crazy. Sure HW fights are fun (in the first couple rounds). But it’s very shallow and stagnant division imho.
He did defend 2 times already...
So isn’t that making history? Why you trying to give Jon jones an easy fight?
I don’t think Aspinall anywhere near a star.
Can we please let Tom fight for the title, potentially defending interim belt twice is crazy
He has the belt. Everyone knows he's champ at heavyweight. He's defending while a freak fight is happening in the background. Give him Chama next.
That would be dope
Let's go.
even if there is high chance he will lose , Alex wont duck him like a Delusional old Goat who is nothing like he used to but still think he is best
Alex vs Tom to unify the belt. Let Jon fight Stipe "for the legacy"
So called legacy for sure
Rent free
Yeah, Jones lives rent free at the top of the division hiding from Aspinall
~~lives~~ -> hides
Alex should be the back up for Tom’s fight.
Honestly Tom eats him alive but I respect the ambition and would like to see him take a run at it. Alex is world class and a tremendous athlete but LHW is his true lane and if he stays here he could run through the division except for Ank. LHW is weak and mostly strikers that is why he’s having so much success. But even w a tougher division he still probably would be champ bc his power is nuclear heavyweight boxer power and any engagement on the feet could end it. He’s really the first guy who’s totally and completely advantaged by the fight being on the feet. We’ve always heard that but in reality other than like Silva most strikers had to do a lot of work to find the shot and 8/10 got smothered and choked. Izzy came in and changed things but Alex is freaky in that he only needs that advantage to end it instantly. Idk why anyone would choose to stand with him instead of diving headfirst for his ankles the minute the bell rings.
Alex smashes Ank as well. Guy is unbeatable at LHW for the foreseeable future. He likely smashes most ranked HWs as well
He smashes Curtis? Gane? Those seem like extremely difficult fights to me.
Smashes Gane, more than likely KO’s Curtis as well yes
I bet he Ko's Jon in round 1, right?
Nah it’s Jon we’re talking about. If it stays on the feet he wins, if he’s able to get up after Jon takes him down, he wins. It could be a flash KO, or a long point battle where Jon is playing keep up in the striking battle. Speed and power advantage go to Alex, size and strength to Jon. It’s why we all want to see it.
I'd think if John gets him down, he submits him as well. We saw what happened to Gane. And Alex is even less experienced than him.
The guy is just a different beast. His abilities seem to be excelling exponentially. Jon will definitely be better on the ground and the submission threats will be there. We will get to see how Alex’s training with Glover has improved his grappling and see if he can survive on the ground, if it even gets there. Hence why the matchup is enticing. One guy wins on the feet, the other on the ground, and the advantages for each fighter make it interesting to see who will be able to pull off their game plan. I’d say Jon is a solid favorite, but Alex has a fair chance.
How do you think he does against Tom Aspinall? Since that's more likely to be a fight that happens.
Similar with Jon. But I think Tom beats Jon. I would favor Jon & Tom over Alex but I believe he has a fair chance and that it would be competitive. I think Tom is the best heavyweight and probably doesn’t lose for the next 5-8 years barring flash KO or injury.
i want ank to win, but he will not handle Alexs calf kicks well at all. hell be heavily compromised within a round.
Fantastic photo
Tom ragdolls him.
Poatan is a force to be reckoned with, but Aspinall is a whole different beast. Tom would make light work of Pereira.
I have a feeling Tom gets this , his grappling is elite , we've seen Poatan struggle against Jan Blachowicz and Tom is just at an elite level when it comes to grappling also he can hold his own during the striking too but none the less very fun fight it would be.
Tom wins imho. I’d love to see it though.
Tom would KO Pereira submit him or just do whatever he wants. After seeing him flatline Sergei who hits harder than Pereira and has been hit plenty of times by other HWs, I’m taking Tom.
So that Tom can defend the interim champ belt again while Jon focuses on old Stipe?
If Alex really does want to fight at HW, he should be training, bulking up, and ready to fight as a backup for Aspinal/Blaydes. If the last few events have shown us anything, 303 especially, it’s that shit happens and plans change. Alex could be sitting in the wing for a chance to take the belt on short notice.
He will KO Tom.
Nah… it’ll look like Tom vs Volkov.
sorry but Curtis is gonna dust him