Fighting JJ makes absolutely no sense for Alex right now, IMHO.

[Rubios]

Sorry for opening another thread, but the other one (where I suggested Alex should get another LHW title defense before moving up to heavyweight) completely derailed from the main topic.

First of all, I’ll quote myself so there’s no confusion about what I think of Poatan:
“Alex is the best striker the UFC has ever seen, because Semmy didn’t manage to transition successfully into MMA. But he’s 38”.

Remind that the big carrot Pereira is chasing is becoming the first ever three-division champion.
If Gane wins the belt -and doesn’t get wrecked in the process needing a 9-month layoff- then yes, Alex should move up immediately, because he’d have a very real shot at it.
If not, another title defense at LHW would never hurt his legacy.

Because if Tom keeps the belt (and as I’ve made clear, I’m not underestimating Alex) I will not try to give a percentage of his chances of beating Aspinall. But they’re very slim, IMHO.
Tom walks around at 260 lbs, maybe more, acked. Pereira’s highest known weight is around 230.
Tom’s 32 and dangerous in any fight scenario. He trains regularly with Rico and has been doing BJJ since he was a kid. Once again, IMHO, he’s the most dangerous MMA fighter on the planet right now.

I don’t see Alex moving up to heavyweight to stay there. I think he’ll only play that card once: for a single fight to chase the third belt. Why would he? Everyone in the top 5 is a solid wrestler.

Jones doesn’t have a belt anymore and just lost his brother.
Maybe JJ could channel that rage, anger, and cruelty into training and discipline. But I think this is a year for him to take shelter, stay close to his family, and not go through the isolation that a training camp demands.
Alex knocking out JJ wouldn’t really mean much, because we’d never know what mental or emotional state Jones would be in for that fight.

Would he make a ton of money? Of course. But Alex is already a superstar. He can keep making very big money after retirement. And there’s even more money behind becoming the only triple champion in UFC history.

Pereira’s got two fights left at most. Sadly.

 

[Blastbeat]

i think the Jones fight is stupid as well. Poatan should defend his title once or twice then if he wants to, move up to HW and fight for the title there. then call it a day.

Jones is retired and i think he should stay retired. if he comes back he just takes an even higher risk of losing. father time is undefeated.

 

[Alpha_T83]

Jon and Alex were born like 2 weeks apart, so they are the same age. Age isn't a factor here when it comes to the matchup. That's probably why he prefers to fight Jones rather than Aspinall. I think Jon Jones is an easier fight than Tom Aspinall at this point.

Alex wants a superfight, and he's only getting that at heavyweight. So his choices are 1) Aspinall/Gane winner or 2) Jon Jones. He's picking the easier superfight.

And beating Jon Jones does a hell of a lot more for his legacy than beating Carlos Ulberg.

 

[Kung Fu Kowboy]

Beating the #1 GOAT means nothing ? It's the biggest fight for Pereira at any weight class... and would put him in Top 3 GOAT conversation... beating Aspinall or Gane won't.

 

[Thy]

sounds like he just wants a money fight to retire.

 

[Mohawk Banditó]

Losing to Ank the first time didn't stunt his momentum and legacy enough to stop any talks of fighting Jones. So if he does go up to HW, I think he should fight for the belt first, especially if it's Gane, but even if it's Tom. I mean, we can see how Volkov-Almeida goes this month to see if Tom even has a good next contender, but even if Pereira goes up against Tom and loses, he can still shoot for Jones. Plus, putting his focus on someone as unreliable as Jon puts your career in a state of flux, which Alex doesn't have a lot of time for unless it's his last fight ever.

On the other hand, if he moves up and fights Jones and loses, then chances are: there goes his title shot.

He could stick around LHW to seemingly defend against Ulberg, but that risks Delija beating Acosta and becoming a fresh name at the top of HW, and it's not even guaranteed the UFC gives him Ulberg. Judging by how the UFC has been giving out shots, they might try to line him up against Jiri again. And what does that do for him?

 

[Alpha_T83]

Beating the #1 GOAT means nothing ? It's the biggest fight for Pereira at any weight class... and would put him in Top 3 GOAT conversation... beating Aspinall or Gane won't.

At this point, getting a KO win over Jon Jones is almost more important than the belt. Maybe not to us, but definitely to a guy like Alex Pereira.

 

[Michael Wetzel]

Jones-Alex is the most lucrative fight UFC can make right now. Belts don't have to be on the line. Dana will not allow either to fight again until the White House card. If Alex wins he can do another fight at heavyweight against Aspinall/Gane winner. If he loses he can return to LHW and defend that title. If Jones wins he can go out with a big paycheck. If he loses it does not hurt his legacy much because it will be attributed to age and inactivity. Alex does not have more than a strikers chance, so Jones winning allows an American to shine in front of Trump.

 

[RockyLockridge]

It's not about sense, it's about dollars

 

[Rubios]

Beating the #1 GOAT means nothing ? It's the biggest fight for Pereira at any weight class... and would put him in Top 3 GOAT conversation... beating Aspinall or Gane won't.

I didn't say the former.
Beating Aspinall/Gane winner means being the first ever fighter to become triple champ.

IMHO, it means even more.

 

[DougieJones]

I also have no interest in watching any Jones fight, but at this point with having won the belt back and his age, I do not think Alex cares about that (titles defenses) anymore. I think he will take the fights that will make him the most money, and retire in a couple years

 

[Rubios]

(...) but even if Pereira goes up against Tom and loses, he can still shoot for Jones. Plus, putting his focus on someone as unreliable as Jon puts your career in a state of flux, which Alex doesn't have a lot of time for unless it's his last fight ever.

On the other hand, if he moves up and fights Jones and loses, then chances are: there goes his title shot.
(...)

You explained it much better than my broken English allowed me to. This, exactly.

 

[Rubios]

(...) I think he will take the fights that will make him the most money, and retire in a couple years

A fight UFC could sell as Alex’s heavyweight debut and the first time in history a fighter could become a triple champion…

…wouldn’t that mean an insane amount of money?

 

[Blastbeat]

You explained it much better than my broken English allowed me to. This, exactly.

your English is pretty good Sherbro, no worries. i understood everything you wrote fine

 

[Alpha_T83]

It's not about sense, it's about dollars

I do believe it's also about legacy.

We on sherdog tend to not care about BMF fights and non-title fights. But UFC fighters don't think like us. Guys like Oliveira want to win a BMF title. And I genuinely believe Alex Pereira wants to fight Jon Jones for the legacy as much as the money.

 

[RockyLockridge]

I do believe it's also about legacy.

We on sherdog tend to not care about BMF fights and non-title fights. But UFC fighters don't think like us. Guys like Oliveira want to win a BMF title. And I genuinely believe Alex Pereira wants to fight Jon Jones for the legacy as much as the money.

agree, But It's not about wether or not it's "Sensible" match making.

It's just not about that.

 

[DougieJones]

A fight UFC could sell as Alex’s heavyweight debut and the first time in history a fighter could become a triple champion…

…wouldn’t that mean an insane amount of money?

I phrased what I meant wrong. I meant he doesn't care about title defenses anymore, he has been there and done that. So I was essentially agreeing with what you just said

 

[Nobru]

IMHO all these comments and opinions have one answer: money

if the paycheck is right, Jones x Poatan happens, @ HW, @ LHW, @catchweight.

even if there is no belt being disputed this fight sells quadrillion ppvs

 

[Trabaho]

Black Jag makes sense. Jiri 3-0 is not apealing. I would make Jiri fight 1 more.

 

[TJH Exitium]

It's very stupid imo as well

Alex has fights at LHW that fans will pay to see. Jones is a very high risk fight with not much real reward.

Also as far as I'm concerned, Jones doesn't deserve any high value fights.
He clowned the UFC and fans ducking N'Gannou and Aspinall then retiring. His legacy was built on PED use and he should fade into obscurity