The Prelim Breakout Star is a once-per-event article that helps fans get to know those who will be entertaining them from the undercard. The intention of the article is not to bring attention to the most talented fighter on the preliminary card, but rather one that the common fan may have overlooked or underestimated.
Alex Pereira
Affiliation – Teixeira MMA and Fitness
From – Sao Paulo, Brazil
Height – 6’4″
Weight – 185 lbs (Middleweight)
Record – 3-1 (0-0, UFC)
What makes him impressive
For those who haven’t heard the attention behind Pereira, he’s a remarkably good kickboxer. Not only does he have a ridiculously long resume filled with KOs in the sport, but he also has wins over a UFC champion and another UFC fighter on this card. Twice he beat Israel Adesanya (once by decision and another by KO). He also beat Dustin Jacoby by first round KO. He’s shown he can bring these skills to MMA as well, picking up all three of his wins by KO as well.
Why he has been overlooked
I think there would be even more hype surrounding Pereira’s move to the UFC would he have had a more consistent MMA record. He fought only four times in MMA before getting signed. Three of those fights were in Jungle Fight, which isn’t easy for American fans to see. Those three fights were also half a decade ago. He does have a recent LFA fight, which is how he got signed, but that’s barely enough to garner the hype that he might deserve. It is enough for him to come in as a big favorite though – currently -250 (Odds courtesy of FanDuel).
What makes this a good match-up
In his UFC debut, Andreas Michailidis was TKOed by Modestas Bukauskas. He couldn’t seem to deal with the pressure or elusiveness of the Lithuanian-born fighter. The biggest issue for Michailidis is that he’ll be dealing with someone who will be far better at those skills than Bukauskas (who is no longer with the UFC). If he is not able to avoid the pressure here, he’ll likely see the same fate.
Prelim Breakout Star Record: 232-108-1 (2 NC) (13 DNF)
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