Alex Pereira shuts down talk of UFC rematch with Sean Strickland in middleweight comeback: ‘He’s my friend’
Ahead of his own vacant light heavyweight title fight in November at UFC 295, former middleweight champion, Alex Pereira has dismissed the notion of a middleweight division return now that training partner, Sean Strickland has clinched the crown, pointing to the friendship the two share since their title-eliminator clas last year.
Pereira, a former undisputed middleweight champion under the banner of the UFC, is slated to make his sophomore light heavyweight divisional walk in the co-main event of UFC 295 in November, taking on former champion, Jiri Prochazka in a vacant championship fight at Madison Square Garden.
Earlier this summer, the Brazilian landed a split decision win over former champion, Jan Blachowicz in the pair’s light heavyweight title-eliminator, scoring wins in rounds two and three against the Polish veteran to return to the winner’s enclosure.
And earlier this month, Pereira, who had yet to book his light heavyweight championship outing with Prochazka, was suggested as an ideal opponent for the above-mentioned, Strickland, who had just struck middleweight championship gold with a unanimous decision shutout victory over common-foe, Israel Adesanya at UFC 293.
Alex Pereira shuts down idea of a title rematch with Sean Strickland
However, despite holding a dominant opening round KO win over Strickland just last year, Pereira insisted that he would not go back to the middleweight limit to fight the Covina native in a championship rematch.
“It is not in my plans,” Alex Pereira said. “My plan was if Israel Adesanya was still the champ down there [at middleweight], maybe win the light heavyweight belt and make a fight with him. But now, no. Sean’s (Strickland) my friend. Also, it’s not a weight cut that I’m looking to do. I always made that weight.”
“(I) never missed weight or anything like that,” Alex Pereira explained. “But it is a hard weight cut. So, right now, it’s not in my interest.” (Transcribed by MMA News)
