Alex Pereira

Overview

Ten UFC wins, and eight of them ended by knockout. The two that went to the cards were against Bruno Silva and Jan Blachowicz, a unanimous decision and a split decision.

Alex Pereira, known as "Poatan," competes at heavyweight with a 10-3 UFC record and a 13-4-0 professional record across all promotions. Two of his three UFC losses also ended by knockout, and the third was a five-round unanimous decision.

He arrives at his next fight on a one-fight losing streak, and the fight that started it was a title fight.

UFC Career

Pereira debuted at UFC 268 in November 2021 and finished Andreas Michailidis in round 2 at 0:18. He followed with a unanimous decision over Bruno Silva in March 2022, then stopped Sean Strickland in round 1 at 2:36 at UFC 276.

The rise got steep from there. At UFC 281 he headlined a five-round fight with Israel Adesanya, an opponent our model rates elite, and finished him in round 5 at 2:01. Adesanya got the rematch at UFC 287 and returned the favor with a round 2 knockout at 4:21. That ended a four-fight win streak.

Pereira rebuilt it quickly. He took a split decision over Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291, then knocked out Jiri Prochazka in round 2 at UFC 295. At UFC 300 he headlined again and finished Jamahal Hill in round 1 at 3:14. He then ran it back with Prochazka at UFC 303 and ended it even faster, at 0:13 of round 2. At UFC 307 he stopped Khalil Rountree Jr. in round 4 at 4:32 in a five-round fight. That made five straight wins, the longest streak of his UFC career.

It ended against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313, a five-round unanimous decision loss and the only one of his three UFC defeats that went the distance. In the rematch at UFC 320 he finished Ankalaev in round 1 at 1:20 in a title fight.

His most recent bout was another title fight, at UFC Freedom 250, where Ciryl Gane stopped him in round 2 at 1:27.

Four wins over elite opponents. Three losses, all to elite opponents.

Fighting Style

Alex Pereira is a striker who lands a lot and wastes little. He connects more often than most UFC fighters and with better accuracy. What he absorbs is about what you'd expect from a typical UFC fighter, so his edge comes from output and precision rather than from being hard to hit.

The finishing pattern fits. Of his 8 knockout wins, 3 came in round 1 and 3 in round 2, with one each in rounds 4 and 5. Six of the eight ended inside two rounds.

He almost never looks to wrestle or hunt for submissions, and he has no submission wins in the UFC. He is also hard to take down, so opponents who want the fight on the mat don't get it easily.

Notable Wins

• Israel Adesanya — KO/TKO, round 5, UFC 281 (2022)
• Jamahal Hill — KO/TKO, round 1, UFC 300 (2024)
• Magomed Ankalaev — KO/TKO, round 1, UFC 320 (2025)
• Jiri Prochazka — KO/TKO, round 2, UFC 303 (2024)

Quick Facts

• Division: Heavyweight
• UFC record: 10-3
• Professional record (all promotions): 13-4-0
• UFC debut: 2021
• Stance: Orthodox
• Height and reach: 6'4", 79" reach
• Team: Teixeira MMA & Fitness-Bethel, CT
• Born: São Bernardo do Campo, SP, Brazil