Aljamain Sterling believes he knows what went wrong with Alex Pereira at UFC 313.
The UFC Light Heavyweight Champion no more is Alex Pereira following his fourth title defense against Magomed Ankalaev last weekend. Pereira had a strong start in round 1 but was eventually overtaken by the striking and takedown threat from Ankalaev.
Ankalaev became the first man to push a full 25 minutes with Pereira, dethroning the champion by unanimous decision and taking his undefeated record at light heavyweight.
At the end of his title reign, the powerful Pereira didn’t look his usual self. ‘Poatan’ was hesitant to throw at times with Ankalaev leading the striking battle for the most part.
Aljamain Sterling pinpoints why Alex Pereira lost at UFC 313
So, what exactly had Pereira stumped in this performance? Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Aljamain Sterling says there are a ‘couple of factors’.
“Pereira fights way too often,” Sterling said on his YouTube channel. “Three title defenses in seven months. That is insanity to do that. And it’s not like his fights were pitter-patter fights. You could say that Jamahal Hill won was no damage. Okay, cool. I understand that. The Jiri [fight], he took some damage in that. Then the Khalil Rountree fight was a big fight where he took some good shots…
“You go from that, add on to the fact that he bounces back from these fights and he goes right back into the gym almost one, maybe two weeks later. You compound that with the amount of times that he’s sparring. When does Pereira give himself his body and his brain and his chin a chance to take a break and just recover?”
Pereira locked in three title defenses last year alone and shattered Ronda Rousey’s record: the fastest fighter to reach 3 title defenses (175 days).
Aljamain Sterling implores Alex Pereira to rest
Pereira’s last successful title defense came against Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307 five months ago, taking a heap of damage despite the win.
“I don’t think he gives himself enough time in between fights to give the best versions of himself every single time,” Sterling explained.
“Then when you get another guy like [Ankalaev] who stylistically is gonna tie him up, who’s also a southpaw, Khalil Rountree was a southpaw, gave him some tough challenges in that fight as well.
“I think he maybe should have taken a little bit more time [off]. But either way, hats off to Ankalaev,” Sterling said.
Turning 38 in July, who knows how long Alex Pereira will want to wait on the sidelines before making his return.