UFC commentator Joe Rogan argues Alex Pereira may be the greatest combat sports athlete of all time
UFC color commentator, Joe Rogan has certainly hyped up newly minted undisputed middleweight champion, Alex Pereira – making the case that the Brazilian may have surpassed former two-weight UFC champion and Olympic gold medalist, Henry Cejudo in many’s eyes, as the best combat sports athlete ever.
Pereira, who headlined UFC 281 earlier this month at Madison Square Garden against two-time GLORY Kickboxing rival, Israel Adesanya – clinched the undisputed middleweight crown with a stunning fifth round standing TKO victory.
Rallying after dropping three of the opening four rounds against Nigerian-Kiwi striker, Adesanya, Alex Pereira managed to stun the City Kickboxing mainstay at the fence in the final frame, dropping the champion with a left hook before scoring a standing technical knockout win to win the undisputed middleweight crown.
Arriving in mixed martial arts back in 2015, Alex Pereira has so far established a 7-1 professional record, transitioning to the sport following a decorated kickboxing career, which saw him mint himself as the undisputed middleweight and light heavyweight champion under the GLORY Kickboxing banner.
Joe Rogan heaps praise on Brazilian finisher, Alex Pereira
Comparing the resumes of both Pereira, and former flyweight and bantamweight UFC champion, Cejudo during a recent podcast appearance with Sean O’Malley on The Joe Rogan Experience, long-time promotional color-commentator, Rogan questioned if Pereira now laid claim to the status of greatest combat sports athlete ever.
“Yeah, he (Henry Cejudo) won the gold medal in the Olympics,” Joe Rogan said. “However, (Alex) Pereira, when he was fighting in GLORY (Kickboxing) – he’s fighting elite professionals, you know where, Henry is wrestling amateurs.”
Expected to make his first attempted defense of the middleweight title in an immediate title rematch with Adesanya last year, Pereira has scored other stunning knockout wins over Sean Strickland, and Andreas Michailidis during his Octagon tenure – sandwiched between a decision win against compatriot, Bruno Silva.
