Reality hits harder than Alex Pereira. While the former UFC light heavyweight champion was the most celebrated mixed martial artist last year, having lost his title to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 seems to have done irreparable damage to his reputation.
According to fellow Brazilian fighter Renato ‘Money’ Moicano, ‘Poatan’ is now feeling the sting of silence, with the spotlight fading fast after his recent title loss.
It’s not just that Pereira lost the fight, but how he did so, and what he has done since then that have contributed to this evident downfall. Firstly, Pereira looked uncharacteristically timid and then made excuses, even asking for a change in rules to make up for his own lack of aggression at UFC 313.
Moicano points out that Pereira has a channel with 606,000 subscribers, which, before his loss at UFC 313, averaged between 150,000 and 200,000 views per video.
“Go to Poatan’s YouTube channel and check the numbers, my brother. Before the fight against Ankalaev, he was doing huge numbers. In his last four days, he is making little views on his YouTube channel”, Moicano noted.
Since his loss, that number has taken a significant hit. His current videos now average anywhere between 50,000-100,000 views.
No, before when he was a champ, even if he did not have a fight, huge numbers. I think people love a champion, and the numbers show”, the former lightweight contender added.
Alex Pereira’s YouTube Channel pic.twitter.com/Zu65OCsmIg
— MMAFanatic (@FanaticMma10) April 24, 2025
Fortunately for Pereira, courtesy of the goodwill he has built with the company, an immediate rematch was on the horizon for him. However, if his opponent’s words are to be believed, the former champion’s time at the top has come to a rather miserable end.
Pereira done with the UFC?
After Ankalaev beat Pereira at UFC 313 to claim the belt, he was all in on running it back. He even said he wanted the rematch in August and started teasing fans with hints that it might go down in Chicago.
But then came the twist—Pereira revealed he was dealing with a hand injury, and suddenly that August timeline started to look shaky.
Despite Ankalaev’s cryptic posts hyping up “The Windy City,” he recently threw out a not-so-subtle jab at Poatan on social media: “Alex Pereira, do you still like fighting? I have a feeling you are done.”
Meanwhile, Pereira, now 37, is in Japan for reasons unknown but says he’ll be back in training soon.
Interestingly, prior to their clash at UFC 313, Pereira had been widely criticized for his globetrotting life. Even as he defended his multiple tours, claiming he was always training, his performance against Ankalaev simply left a lot to be desired.
And even as rumors of an injured hand and infection came to the fore, analyst Chael Sonnen set the record straight for the former champion.
Criticizing his timid effort for his fourth title defense, Sonnen said, “There was nothing about that first fight that would lead a reasonable analyst to believe you’re going to have a different outcome in the second fight.”
Hopefully, Pereira has taken his lessons well.
