Alex Pereira doesn’t just want to move up to heavyweight, he wants to face former heavyweight champion Jon Jones at the UFC’s upcoming White House card.
Pereira just destroyed Magomed Ankalaev in 1:20 to
claim back his light heavyweight title (watch the highlights here). Now he wants the biggest superfight possible, and that would involve light heavyweight GOAT Jones.
UFC CEO Dana White revealed at the post-fight press conference that Pereira had been talking about moving up another division in the days leading into his UFC 320 rematch against Ankalaev. And now Pereira has confirmed those plans, although he did it carefully due to the sensitive nature of the callout.
Just days ago, Jon Jones’ oldest brother and former NFL player Arthur Jones died at just 39 years of age. “Poatan” revealed he had originally planned to call “Bones” out, but decided instead to hold a moment of silence in the arena for Arthur.
“I’ll answer this question and the subject one time,” Pereira said at the UFC 320 presser through a translator. “With all due respect, with all the respect I have for the situation — and I’ve said this in the back, a lot of people try to create a lot of stuff around this. So again, please, with all the respect, I was going to ask for Jon Jones at the White House. But with everything that happened, it’s not the right time to talk about it.”
The UFC has started stripping title holders of belts when they move up a division to avoid double-champ logjams in multiple divisions, but Pereira believes he’s active enough to get special consideration.
“I don’t think that’s needed,” he said of relinquishing his newly returned light heavyweight belt. “Everyone knows how often I fight, so that’s not going to be an issue.”
The biggest sticking point for this massive fight would be the UFC itself. Dana White has said he’d rather see Pereira remain at 205 pounds, presumably so the promotion’s golden goose can continue laying profitable eggs 2-3 times per year. But “Pereira” claims he’s already worked through White’s hesitance.
“No need, we already talked backstage,” he claimed. As to what was said?
“It’s a secret.”
