UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has spoken up on behalf of former two-division champion Alex Pereira in a recent video.
Pereira suffered a knockout defeat to Ciryl Gane in the UFC Freedom 250 co-headliner at the White House, which crushed the Brazilian’s dreams of winning a UFC title in a third weight class.
In the aftermath of the bout, Pereira took issue with Gane for allegedly landing illegal blows to the back of his head, which he believes played a major role in ending the fight. ‘Poatan’ also criticized referee Herb Dean for failing to intervene and allowing the Frenchman to continue landing the controversial strikes.
Volkanovski has now released a video in support of Pereira, while also calling out Dean for his blunder. He said:
“Herb, I love you, but you should have been pretty vocal… I don’t want to throw shade on people, but there were a lot of back-of-the-head shots.
If it were someone I didn’t like that did that, I’d probably be a lot more clear with how I’m saying this. We need to have that discussion, and we’re having that discussion. Pereira’s asking for people to speak about it, here I am.”
Check out Alexander Volkanovski’s comments about Alex Pereira below:
Alex Pereira Faces Career Crossroads After Hinting at Retirement Following UFC Freedom 250 Controversy
Alex Pereira recently released a statement on social media expressing his disappointment with the situation and hinting at potential retirement.
The 38-year-old stated that he was ‘afraid‘ of returning to the octagon after the controversy at the White House. ‘Poatan’ stated:
“Honestly, I’m afraid to go back to fighting with all this going on. I think I’ve already done my part.”
Check out Alex Pereira’s comments below:
At 38, ‘Poatan’ is moving closer to the final stage of his fighting career. The Brazilian and his team have a major decision to make over whether he should continue testing himself at heavyweight or move back down to light heavyweight if he chooses to return to the octagon.
Pereira recently told Ariel Helwani that he wants to continue in the 265-pound division and is game to fight anyone in the coming months. He would also love to run it back with ‘Bon Gamin.’
Before the White House card, Pereira had signed a new eight-fight contract with the UFC. Following his TKO loss to Gane, things may seem bleak for the former champion right now, but he will undoubtedly be determined to bounce back, capture that third UFC title, and then ride off into the sunset on his own terms.
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