Mailbag: Alex Pereira continues his incredible run, Dan Ige claims chance at BMF belt at UFC 303

Last Saturday, Alex Pereira knock out Jiri Prochazka He successfully defended his light heavyweight title for the second time in the main event. UFC 303This is just the latest episode in one of the most remarkable streaks in MMA history, as Pereira has risen through the ranks of the all-time greats in a very short space of time. Now the question is whether “Poitan” will move up to heavyweight and try to become the first three-division champion in UFC history, or whether he'll fight a few more bouts at 205. Either way, this is Pereira's world, and we're all just living in it. So let's talk about the aftermath of UFC 303.

Alex Pereira, a three-division champion?

Realistically what do you think Pereira can do at heavyweight? Is he already in the top 10, top 5, HW?

The big question coming into Saturday is whether Pereira will move up to heavyweight for another chance at immortality, partly because Joe Rogan has essentially demanded it, and partly because the entire MMA community is little more than 8-year-olds playing with action figures. “This is fun. I know the drawbacks are obvious, but let's try it. Never mind, let's just hit it right now!”

But before we look at the downsides, let's first look at Pereira as a heavyweight. How far can he go? Can he really become a triple champion? Yes, he can, but I wouldn't bet on it.

As a rule, the champion of a lower weight class is at least a top 10 fighter in the weight class above. But the heavyweight division is in bad shape, probably the worst of the men's divisions (though the last fight with light heavyweight is close). I count seven capable heavyweights, including Jon Jones, who has fought once and will likely retire after beating a retired firefighter in his next fight. At the very least, Pereira is in the top eight, but the only three I'm realistically confident could beat him are Jones, Curtis Blaydes, and Tom Aspinall. I'd probably pick Pereira, although someone like Alexander Volkov would be a sure thing. And for the same reasons, Pereira could beat any of the three guys I project above him.

Pereira is big (he weighed about 230 pounds on Saturday, about 12 pounds lighter than Emelianenko Fedor fought) and has a skill set that is uniquely dangerous. It would be foolish to underestimate him against any heavyweight. Pereira is a special fighter, and I hope you enjoy watching him fight.

Do your job

Jed, do you think Magomed Ankalaev will lose to Pereira for the first time in his UFC career?

Now that I've praised Pereira, let me spoil your happy parade: “Poitan” should not be fighting for the heavyweight title. He has his own title to defend.

Maybe I'm a boomer, but one of the most frustrating things about being an MMA fan these days is the obsession with multi-division champions. Whenever someone wins a belt, we immediately want him to fight in the next weight class, even if he hasn't won the weight class yet. No one will deny that Pereira is great, but he has four wins against three opponents at 205. Moving him up to heavyweight is a George W. Bush “Mission Accomplished” banner. How about we chill out a bit? Let's have him beat five different guys in a weight class before we start smacking action figures.

Especially since there's someone Pereira should be fighting. Magomed Ankalaev is ranked #2 in UFC light heavyweight with four top 10 wins and a deserved draw with Jan Blachowicz. The guy deserves a chance to fight for the title and Pereira, as champion, should give him that chance. Pereira seems motivated, Ankalaev deserves it and Pereira should work harder in his own weight class before moving up, so what's the problem?

Simply put, we live in a “now” culture and people are afraid that Ankalaev winning will ruin things. It's a valid concern, but if Ankalaev beats Pereira, “Poitan” probably wouldn't be eligible to challenge for heavyweight and we're just forcing it because we want him to be a three-division champion. And that's what pisses me off, because we're just manipulating the outcome because we want it to, instead of letting it happen naturally.

This is my argument that rushing Pereira into a heavyweight title fight is foolish. should I would love to see him fight Ankalaev, it would be a great fight!

Aside from Ankalaev deserving to win, he is also a great foil for Pereira. I love Jili like a baby, but if he and Pereira fight 100 times, it's clear that Alex will win 98 times. But what about Ankalaev? That's a different story. Ankalaev can beat Pereira. He's tough and has good grappling skills, which means he's a threat to the champion. But Ankalaev nearly got his legs kicked off by Blachowicz, and Pereira is the best low kicker in MMA. Both men have the tools to win, both are tough, and their styles are a perfect match. This is a special fight and one to watch next.

Alex Pereira is historically

How would Piraira have fared against Daniel Cormier or Jones, both of whom were past their peak?

Probably not. I love Pereira, but his current phenomenal success is partly due to the farce that the light heavyweight division is. Yan is old (and has treated him badly), Jili has very little defense, and Exactly the same thing Even though Pereira got knocked out in the first bout, in the rematch Jamahal Hill thought it would be wise to kickbox against arguably the best striker in MMA history (and it might not work out.) I think Pereira is a better wrestler and grappler than he gets credit for, but the fact is, we still haven't had to see much of him in the fight because people are just going to kickbox him.

Jones and Cormier won't do that.

Daniel Cormier is an Olympic wrestler. He'll put Pereira on his back every round until he wins by decision or ends the fight. I see him as a much bigger favorite than Alex. Jones is a little different. At the very least, his skinny legs make him an attractive kicking target for Pereira, but considering how straightforward he was in his approach to Ciril Gane, I think Jones will do the same. Again, I'm confident either fighter would beat Pereira. It's just a terrible style matchup for him.

Jiri Prochazka

What do you think is next for Jiri?

What Giri should do next is take some time off to recover. That was a really bad knockout. Then he should go back to the gym and maybe learn the value of defense. I'm not saying he needs to become like Jose Aldo, but after losing consecutive fights to Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje realized his kamikaze style had limitations. Instead, Gaethje learned how to develop better defense and focused, sudden attacks, making him a much more dangerous fighter. Giri should do the same.

But will he do so?

After the fight, Jiri made the best Jiri statement he could, saying he needed to evolve to be the best. Who knows what that means? The man revealed during fight week that he believes Pereira lost the first fight not because his front leg was put through a wood chipper and then rammed into a counter, but because of Pereira's shamanic rituals and spirits. Who would be surprised if Jiri posted a video on Instagram three months later saying that he, like Pereira, moved to the Amazon rainforest to commune with spirits and absorb their powers?

As for Jiri, you and I can only speculate, but if I were to take a guess, I would say he will do virtually nothing and revert to vintage Jiri sometime in the winter at Jamahal Hill.

Dan Ige

Will Dan Ige be playing in the next BMF match after Saturday?

In all my years as a mixed martial arts fan, I have never seen anything like what happened on Saturday. Brian Ortega did a terrible job before the fight, pulled out of his fight against Diego Lopez on fight day, and then somehow Dan Ige… He wasn't on the card or in the arena. — stepped in with just two hours notice, and I can’t emphasize enough how great he and Lopez were to fight under these circumstances.

Honestly, there's nothing more to say. In 99.999999999 percent of circumstances, this fight would have been called off. It happens all the time. But somehow the stars aligned and we got a very entertaining fight and one of the best storylines of the year instead. UFC should take this opportunity to make Ige the Jr. BMF champion and let him choose his own opponent for his first title defense. He deserves that honor.

Dan Ige and the Hall of Fame's inadequacies

What kind of awards, honors and recognition can or should a fighter like Ige receive when he steps up? Does MMA have a Purple Heart and what is it?

I lied. There is more to be said on this subject.

During the UFC 303 post-show, he lamented that as incredible as the moment was, ultimately, it won't stick around forever. Yes, Ige got his hard-earned rewards, and he's beloved by millions of fans, but for how long? MMA fans come and go quickly. In five years, most fans will not have seen the fight, so at best they'll have heard about it. At worst, they'll only know that Ige lost to Diego Lopez. It won't be Fight of the Year, and it won't be in the Hall of Fame. As long as fans can remember, and fans of this sport have short memories.

I don't know the answer, but I wish there was a way to change it. For example, if the UFC Hall of Fame actually existed and was a facility that you could visit, they could erect a little monument to Ige as the fighter who fought on the shortest notice. Something like that. Anything would be fine, really. But instead this moment must live on through us. So I plan to preach the gospel of Ige for years to come.

Thanks for reading, and thanks to everyone who sent in tweets (Xs?)! Do you have any burning questions about anything remotely related to martial arts? Then you're in luck, send me a tweet. translatorand I'll answer any question I like! It can be topical or outlandish. As long as it's a good question, that's fine. Thanks again, and I'll see you next week.