Mixed martial arts star Alex Pereira will vacate his UFC light heavyweight title belt, CEO Dana White announced Friday, marking another step toward his journey to become the first three-division champion in UFC history.
With the Danbury, Conn. resident relinquishing his title, Jiri Prochazka and Carlos Ulberg will now square off for the vacant light heavyweight belt at UFC 327 in April. Meanwhile, Pereira is expected to enter the heavyweight division for his next fight, presenting several compelling matchup possibilities in the octagon.
Tom Aspinall has held the heavyweight title for the past three years, with his most recent fight against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 last October ruled a no-contest due to an accidental eye poke. However, as Aspinall faces an uncertain recovery timeline after undergoing double-eye surgery earlier this month, calls are mounting to strip the English fighter’s belt and offer Pereira a chance at the heavyweight title.
Following Aspinall’s anti-climactic fight with Gane last year, Pereira floated the idea of fighting Jon Jones at this summer’s UFC White House event, set to take place on the South Lawn of the presidential residence. Jones is widely regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter in UFC history, successfully defending his light heavyweight title 11 times before making the jump up to heavyweight in 2023, defeating Gane and Stipe Miocic before announcing his retirement the following year.
Pereira grew up in a São Paolo favela and, after beginning an amateur fighting career in Brazil, moved to Connecticut in 2020, first living with his trainer before renting an apartment with a group of teammates. And while Pereira’s fortunes quickly changed after making his UFC debut the following year, the 38-year-old fighter has continued to live in Danbury, his Range Rover a regular sighting around the western Connecticut town.
He won his first belt at UFC 281 in New York City, defeating Israel Adesanya by TKO to earn the middleweight title, before stepping up to light heavyweight a year later. Should Pereira defeat either Jones or Gane for a vacant heavyweight title, he would become the first fighter in UFC history to be a champion in three separate weight classes.
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