UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira has responded to Jon Jones‘ comments about a potential fight between them, stating that he is open to the challenge and that it is up to the promotion to decide.
Alex Pereira? Yeah, he got Jon Jones’ message, loud and clear.
Jones, the UFC’s reigning light heavyweight champ, had something to say. It was Friday, UFC 301 fan Q&A in Rio de Janeiro. Jones had been talking about a potential face-off between him and Pereira.
And boy, did he talk.
A series of social media posts, Jones made his case. He’d rather defend his UFC heavyweight belt against Pereira. This, after his expected bout against Stipe Miocic. And not a unification bout against interim champ Tom Aspinall.
Pereira’s response to Jones’ remarks? He didn’t back down.
“He said he wants this fight, and my job is to fight,” Pereira said, speaking in Portuguese. He added, “This is for the promotion to decide, so let’s see what happens now.”
After his last fight, Pereira had expressed a desire to fight at heavyweight. But no response from the UFC. So, he kinda put that idea on the back burner. His plans changed.
Then came Jones’ message.
Pereira was left wondering if this might change his plans again. He said, “Becoming a three-division champion is very hard and not many people try it. But if I have that opportunity, I just want to bring joy to everyone and a better life for my family.”
Pereira’s got quite the resume. He’s the promotion’s 205-pound beltholder, a former UFC middleweight champion, and a former two-division champion in GLORY Kickboxing. He headlined UFC 300 with a first-round knockout of Jamahal Hill. That added a fifth former champion to a UFC hit list that includes Jiri Prochazka, Jan Blachowicz, Israel Adesanya, and Sean Strickland.
After UFC 300, Pereira publicly floated the idea of testing himself at heavyweight. But he told MMA Fighting on Thursday that he expects his next bout to be a 205-pound title defense against Prochazka. A rematch of their November meeting.
Jones, 36, is also a two-division UFC champion. He held the light heavyweight belt from 2011-15 and again from 2018-20. Then he captured the heavyweight title with a first-round submission of Ciryl Gane in March 2023. Jones is expected to face Miocic sometime in the second half of 2024. This, after recovering from a shoulder injury.
Early Friday morning, he wrote on social media that a fight against Pereira would be “absolutely massive”. He downplayed Aspinall’s ability to draw. He said a Pereira bout “would be the biggest fight in MMA history.”
“There’s absolutely no fight that generates a payday like that. Marketing would be insane,” Jones wrote.
“Tom only matters in the U.K., newsflash. Pereira is one of the most polarizing figures this sport has seen. Tom’s a contender who won a belt against another contender. We had to save Madison Square Garden’s main event. I’m thinking dollar signs, legacy, big picture here. Not what U.K. fans are dying to see.”
Pereira has never competed above the light heavyweight limit. But he said Friday that he walks around at 238 pounds when not in camp.
“The longer it takes [to move up to heavyweight], I will be better prepared to fight at heavyweight,” Pereira said. “I’m heavy, but I’m more strong than heavy. I can get to the weight I want in a short period of time.”
A poll was conducted. The question: Which would you rather see? Jones vs. Aspinall or Jones vs. Pereira?
The results?
Jones vs. Aspinall got 34% of the votes (1842 votes).
Jones vs. Pereira? A whopping 65% (3485 votes).
A total of 5327 votes were cast.
So, what’s next? Only time will tell.