“Alex done he never coming back let’s move on June July August I said yes.” Magomed Ankalaev dropped some serious claims on X regarding Alex Pereira’s apparent retirement. Of course, given the kind of performance Pereira gave us at UFC 313, a title rematch should be the next big thing at light heavyweight. We all saw how hesitant and cautious the Brazilian was, and we never really saw him at his full potential in the bout. But according to the Russian LHW champion, ‘Poatan’ refused the rematch 3 times. And while the fighting community expressed concern about the former champ, Chael Sonnen swooped in, in his defense. 

The man with the hands of stone hasn’t really said anything about retirement. Instead, earlier in January 2025, Pereira dropped a hint at wanting to fight at heavyweight. That was indeed the time when Jon Jones was ready to ditch his belt just to fight Pereira. Talking to Ariel Helwani, Pereira discussed the potential doubts about moving to heavyweight. However, a fight against ‘Bones’ does excite him. He claimed, “Anything’s possible. A lot of things no one thought could happen, happen with me.”

And as Ankalaev speculated about Pereira’s retirement plan, Sonnen stood with the Brazilian for his selfless acts. Taking to his YT channel, ‘The American Gangster’ weighed in on ‘Poatan’s previous bouts against Jiri Prochazka. According to him, ‘Denisa’ was the worst draw in the top 3 list of LHWs. He claimed that Prochazka was tough enough that it was hard to scare him, back him down, or beat him down. But overlooking all of that, Pereira accepted the bout not once, but twice. 

Sonnen kept his focus on Pereira vs. Prochazka 2, and said, “There was no legacy on the line. He’d already beaten him. He did it for you, he did it for the organizaiton, he did it for Jiri Prochazka, he did it for the locker room in the back of light heavyweights that need that division to move forward so that they can keep morale alive for their own dreams.” So, does this mean that Sonnen was actually against the notion of Ankalaev lashing out at the Brazilian? Well, not really. 

‘The Bad Guy’ confirmed that Ankalaev had earned the right to call Pereira out. After all, he defeated ‘Poatan’ fair and square. However, there might come a scenario where Ankalaev gets to fight someone other than Pereira. And if that happens, Sonnen suggested that Pereira could follow the example set by Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev. It’s true that Pereira had already moved from the middleweight division to light heavyweight. But with the possibility of not getting a title shot, his move to the heavyweight division seemed good enough. 

Sonnen even promised to use his personal effort to make it happen. He said, “If Ankalaev gets his way and they just find him a new opponent and move on, I’m going to reinvigorate my own personal push to get Pereira to heavyweight. Right? If Pereira is not going to fight for the world title at 205, I do not believe, I believe that we need to have him fight at 205. I am gonna make my own personal push that we get him up a class. And see if this champ-champ thing can be done.” 

Think about it. The possibility of Tom Aspinall or Jon Jones vs. Alex Pereira has got our blood pumping. But even if the Brazilian superstar agrees to move up a class, there’s a hurdle. And that’s none other than the UFC CEO, Dana White. 

Dana White talks about moving Alex Pereira to the heavyweight division

During the press conference for UFC 303, the UFC CEO admitted that Pereira was ready to fight as a heavyweight. White said, “He said, ‘I’ll fight at heavyweight. I’ll fight wherever you want, whenever you want.’ He’s ready to turn around and wants to fight again right away. He’s that guy, he’s a savage. The guy’s an absolute stud.”

Needless to say, White was excited about having Pereira in the heavyweight division. However, the fact that the Brazilian started off as a middleweight concerned him. It was one thing to watch him face off against one of the biggest light heavyweights in the roster. But having him fight someone as big as Jones was a completely different story. He even dragged Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin into the picture. White claimed, “Chuck [Liddell] and Forrest Griffin used to walk around at 230, and they would cut down to 205. That’s not big. Some of these heavyweights are 265. They’re cutting to 265. It’s just another level.” 

Moreover, White pointed out that Pereira wasn’t in the light heavyweight division for very long. If the man with the hands of stone wants to move to the heavyweight division, he would have to clear out his current division first, which he has yet to do. Nevertheless, we still have to hope for Pereira to prove himself against Ankalaev in a rematch. 

What are your thoughts on having Pereira as a heavyweight title challenger? Do you think we’ll get to see the rematch between ‘Poatan’ and Ankalaev anytime soon? Let us know who’d win if the rematch ever takes place.