UFC 300 is fast approaching and Alex Pereira is already toying with the idea of challenging freshly minted champion Dricus Du Plessis for his belt at the mega-event. The most pressing question currently is who will Du Plessis face in his first title defense and when. El jefe himself has stated it will not be Sean Strickland in an immediate rematch, even though he felt like Sean won. Perhaps the Sean Strickland brand of fight promotion made even the UFC a bit uncomfortable.
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When asked if he was interested in making Du Plessis vs. Adesanya, possibly for UFC 300, Dana replied, “We’ll figure this out Tuesday. We’ll probably announce it next week,” which leads me to believe the company is looking for a big name that could headline their 300th numbered event, but is Alex Pereira’s name big enough when not immediately opposite Israel Adesanya? That’s today’s $64,000 question.
Is a Du Plessis-Pereira fight big enough to main event UFC 300?
Alex Pereira has certainly taken the UFC by storm in his short time with the promotion. Turning pro back in October of 2015, the Brazilian champion has just 11 fights to his name inside a cage, but he’s already claimed gold in two divisions since joining the roster a little over two years ago. From his friendship with Glover Teixeira to his rivalry with Adesanya, Pereira has captured the fanbase in a way that few have, especially in such a short period of time.
He recently split with his longtime girlfriend (she was married!) and fans were all over the story, posting updates and diagrams, you name it. It’s clear that they pay close attention to whatever he does. When he defeated Adesanya for the belt, we were all mesmerized, and when he took the belt back to his Indigenous tribe in Brazil we were all enchanted, and now, when he hints that he may want to drop down and snag more gold for himself at UFC 300, we all anxiously await Dana’s next update.
Personally, I’d love to see it happen. When Israel Adesanya said he was going to take a long break away from the sport, I appreciated that he was self-aware enough to realize he needed the break. I’d love if he were to come back at any point, I just hope it comes with a clear head, a rejuvenated body and a fat purse. For now, though, I’d rather it be Pereira facing Du Plessis, and I could absolutely see it being either the main or co-main event.
With Dana White also revealing at the UFC 297 post-fight press conference that Conor McGregor wouldn’t be fighting in June, one has to wonder if that extends to International Fight Week, since that was the proposed timeframe for his return. Conor’s coach, John Kavanagh, stated that McGregor wouldn’t be fighting at UFC 300 either, so that greatly reduces a major headliner occurring at UFC 300. With options this limited, Pereira could, indeed fit the bill. The announcement is supposed to be coming this week, perhaps today. We’ll just have to wait and see.
What do you think?
We’re pinning this post to our front-page all day to give our community a chance to have their say. So jump in the comments and tell us whether you think Alex Pereira is a big enough name to lead UFC 300. But if you want to discuss anything else, that’s cool, too. You’ve got an open forum here, so use it.