Alex Pereira’s meteoric rise through the UFC ranks has seen him become one of the biggest stars in the sport – and for good reason.
The hard-hitting Brazilian kickboxer has only fought in MMA professionally 14 times. But within that brief run, he has already won, lost the UFC middleweight title, and moved up to light heavyweight, where he resides as champion.
‘Poatan’ earned Fighter of the Year status for winning three light heavyweight title fights in 2024, and he gears up for his stiffest test yet when he faces No. 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev in the main event of UFC 313 on March 8.
Here’s everything you need to know about Alex Pereira.
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What age is Alex Pereira?
Alex Sandro Silva Pereira was born July 7, 1987 in Sao Bernardo do Campo, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
He has a younger sister named Aline, who fights and is three years younger. As of February 2025, he is 37 years old.
Alex Pereria’s height and weight
Alex Pereira is 6’4″ and has competed at 185lb and 205lb during his UFC career. His weigh-in weight differs greatly from his in-cage and walkaround weights.
‘Poatan’ often shows off his pre-fight weight when he steps on the scales at home at up to 235 lbs, which is as heavy as a UFC heavyweight.
After his weigh-in for UFC 300, where he fought Jamahal Hill, Pereira was up to 232lb for his fight day weight. That’s a 27lb, or almost two-stone, weight gain within 24 hours and is a more realistic indicator of his in-cage weight.
X/Twitter and Instagram accounts
Alex Pereira has a strong Instagram following, with over 4.8m followers. You can join them @alexpoatanpereira.
Pereira is also on X, formerly Twitter, @AlexPereiraUFC, and has 184k followers.
Who is Alex Pereira’s girlfriend?
It is unclear if Alex Pereira currently has a girlfriend. He was believed to be dating Polyana Viana until May 2024, when the pair appeared to unfollow one another on social media. She has since posted content with the likes of Merab Dvalishvili and has not addressed the Pereira rumors.
Before that, he had been dating a woman named Merle. However, when it emerged that she was still married to another man, that relationship ended.
Alex Pereira MMA record
| W-L-D | (T)KO | Sub |
| 12-2-0 | 10-1 | 0-1 |
Career stats
| Significant Strikes Landed per Minute | 5.46 |
| Significant Striking Accuracy | 63% |
| Significant Strikes Absorbed per Minute | 3.44 |
| Significant Strike Defense (the % of opponents strikes that did not land) | 55% |
| Average Takedowns Landed per 15 minutes | 0.14 |
| Takedown Accuracy | 100% |
| Takedown Defense (the % of opponents’ TD attempts that did not land) | 70% |
| Average Submissions Attempted per 15 minutes | 0.3 |
Alex Pereira’s net worth
Pereira’s short-notice appearances and general reliability in the UFC pin him as one of their top-earners. As a champion, he takes a cut of the PPV and is likely earning millions of dollars per fight. UFC salaries are often not disclosed, and any figures found online are likely false unless they come directly from the Athletic Commission responsible for the event.
We can confirm that Pereira receives $42,000 in UFC fighter promotional guidelines compliance pay per fight for fulfilling fight-week duties and wearing the correct attire. This rate is what all champions in the promotion receive.
Alex Pereira’s next fight
Alex Pereira’s next fight is scheduled for March 8 in the main event of the UFC 313 PPV, where he will take on top contender Magomed Ankalaev – that event will take place in Las Vegas.
Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka rematch KO
On Saturday, June 30, Alex Pereira won a rematch with Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303 by round two knockout. The fight was a rematch for Pereira’s undisputed light heavyweight title. They first fought at UFC 295, where Pereira secured a knockout to win the vacant title.
Since UFC 295, Pereira has won three fights against Jamahal Hill, Prochazka, and Rountree Jr. On the other hand, Prochazka has won two fights against Aleksandar Rakic and Jamahal Hill.
Alex Pereira vs Jiri Prochazka 1
The first fight between Pereira and Prochazka was an exciting clash for as long as it lasted. ‘Poatan’ ultimately showed his vicious power, just as he had done a year prior at the same venue against Israel Adesanya in the fifth round to win the middleweight belt.
The win earned Pereira yet another ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus.
Alex Pereira vs Israel Adesanya
After their two kickboxing matches, which Pereira had won, there was massive anticipation for their trilogy in the UFC. The Brazilian struggled for four rounds and was almost stopped at the end of the second.
But he managed to land an unbelievable come-from-behind victory towards the end of the fifth, ending Adesanya’s lengthy and dominant reign atop the 185lb division.
Pereira vs Adesanya 2
After their first MMA meeting and third overall, there was still a clamor to see Pereira and Adesanya fight again. Adesanya entered an intense training camp and emerged victorious in Miami at UFC 287, setting their record at Pereira 3-1 Adesanya.
It is still unclear if they will ever have a trilogy bout in the octagon. Pereira is 3- 1 in their four fights in kickboxing and MMA.
Alex Pereira vs Jamahal Hill
The headliner for UFC 300 needed to be a big fight, and Pereira delivered when he faced the last man to hold light-heavyweight gold: Jamahal Hill. The division had been left without a champion for over a year when ‘Sweet Dreams’ vacated the belt due to an injury.
Hill returned to contention immediately at UFC 300 to face Pereira, who had picked up the vacant title at UFC 295. Unfortunately for Hill, it didn’t work out for him, as he was viciously knocked out within a round.
Alex Pereira vs Sean Strickland
Alex Pereira earned his shot at UFC gold when he knocked out Sean Strickland within minutes at UFC 276. That event was headlined by Israel Adesanya vs Jared Cannonier, and the pair was put together on a card for the first time in the promotion.
Pereira’s knockout over Strickland is one of his best-aged wins, seeing as ‘Tarzan’ went on to win middleweight gold.
How many times has Alex Pereira beat Izzy?
Arguably one of the greatest feuds in combat sports history, Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya go back years. They fought twice in kickboxing, with the Brazilian first taking a controversial decision before knocking out his rival in their rematch.
They had a trilogy of sorts when they met at UFC 281 in November 2022 at Madison Square Garden. Adesanya dominated for four and a half rounds before Pereira scored a standing TKO in the fifth round. Finally, they fought for a fourth time at UFC 287, with Adesanya winning by knockout.
Alex Pereira stone meme
The Moai emoji is a face on a stone representative of the statues on Easter Island. It is used to represent being unemotional. Fans on social media began to compare stone-faced Pereira to the emoji, and he has embraced the meme.
Alex Pereira merch
Alex Pereira sells merchandise through his website and several partnerships. The UFC also sells merchandise for Pereira, although their options are limited.