Alex Pereira On Madison Square Garden: ‘It’s My House Now’
NEW YORK, NY–Alex Pereira is the new UFC light heavyweight champion.
Following a vicious combination, Pereira defeated Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 by TKO in the second round. While it appeared to be a quick stoppage by referee Marc Goddard, neither Prochazka–who spoke in the Octagon after the fight–or Pereira found any issue with it.
“He was feeling those punches,” said Pereira, speaking through a translator. “Once he dropped, he fell. I felt he was fading away. I know his fans won’t like it, but I believe it was right.”
Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Pereira (9-2) has now won three bouts at Madison Square Garden, two of which were title bouts. Originally from Brazil but now living in Connecticut, Pereira loves fighting at MSG.
“It’s my house now,” said Pereira. “I just need the key. If I could fight here all the time, I would.”
Pereira, a decorated kickboxer who is the newest GLORY Hall of Fame inductee, has been on an otherworldly run. A former UFC middleweight champion, Pereira is now a two-division champion in the UFC.
Courtesy Zuffa LLC
Would he ever consider fighting for the heavyweight title?
“People have been asking me since I was middleweight champion,” said Pereira. “I have to listen to my body. I’m 36. I’m not sure how long I’ll be fighting. I have to focus on where I am.”
After defeating Prochazka (29-4-1), who had not lost since 2015, the future appears to be set for Pereira. His next opponent is former light heavyweight Jamahal Hill, who was forced to vacate the title over the summer after rupturing his Achilles tendon.
Hill defeated Glover Teixeira in January to win the belt. Teixeira is one of Pereira’s closest friends and teammates, adding a different backstory to the bout. But Pereira seems to prefer a trilogy bout against Israel Adesanya, who he defeated for the middleweight title before losing it back to him this past spring.
“It’s nothing personal [with Hill],” said Pereira. “With Israel, he didn’t seem motivated [to fight me]. I think that’s a fight everyone would like to see.”
