Chama

The Octagon experienced thrills and more Chama magic courtesy of Poatan at UFC 303. Alex Pereira launches the motion that he is the current face of UFC after stepping in to replace a Conor McGregor cancelation (among others) to secure another successful title defense in stone-cold fashion, slayin' one of the baddest cats on the planet in dominant and thrilling fashion. Poatan really is that dude. He really is HIM.

Mr. Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere, and Anyweight has once again stepped up for the UFC in a massive way, agreeing to wash away a solid camp to move his coveted rematch with Procházka up from Perth (305) to Paradise (303). Poatan accepting this change on short notice is as badass a thing a champion can do. As ballsy a thing that a champ can do. The rematch with Procházka was expected to be an even more difficult defense than the first bout. In my evaluation and many others, a redemption filled Procházka was sure to be a warrior tough to defeat. I even had the gull to switch my pre-303 pick from the champ to the challenger. Pereira quickly showed me to be a fool... who was I to bet against that man's confidence?

I should have predicted the correct outcome the moment Poatan accepted to fight at 303. Pereira wanted to help Dana and Hunter, but he also didn't want to waste time on leaving no doubt regarding Procházka. He did just that; leaving folk's jaw fragments on the floor in shock & amazement once again. The pre-match aura between the two surpassed that from the first:

video via UFC Canada//X

Pure and utter chills on the brink of battle. The battle didn't surpass the first, however. The night belonged to Poatan. The battle and war belonged to Poatan as the champ felt no attack throughout the 1st-round, prior to landing a blast at the horn that opened up the coffin door for Poatan to shut and nail closed. Known here as the kick; now known around the globe as the "leaving no doubt" explanation point:

video via Dana White//X

Switch-Kick to pure perfection. AP knew Jiří was still hurt from the end-of-the-round knockdown in the 1st; saw his compromised chin, all in the open, and then click-click BOOM! I love DC's "Stop the fight Herb Dean", ha! Herb being Herb, but this time it stems from Poatan's epic "let me cook" moment with Herb before the J-Hill knockout in April... Herb looked up at him after the switch-kick like: "he's still moving, would you like to kill him my lord?"... comedy! Jokes aside, what a moment. What a knockout to leave absolute no doubt regarding Procházka. Remember when Jiří was the one finishing everyone left and right? Remember when Jiří dominated every prior UFC opp? Jiří was the hunter; until he ran into the almighty Poatan and became the hunted. In just a short span; Poatan has established himself as the UFC's best attraction... and perhaps the best fighter.

We can no longer deny it or shy away from it- Alex Pereira is the current face of the UFC promotion. This dude has taken the sport of MMA by storm since his switch from Glory kickboxing... a promotion that he mastered and became the king of. He is now doing that with the UFC & in short-short order. Looking at his attraction level from a winning scale; since joining the UFC and having his first bout in late 2021, Pereira has fought a total of nine times... with a total of five title fights. Pereira is 8-1 with 6 knockouts and is just the 8th fighter in UFC history to win a title in two divisions. Pereira accomplished that feat in just 364 days; beating Israel Adesanya for the MW title & Procházka for the vacant LHW title. Two of the best fighters on the planet at the time of slaying. Beyond impressive. Here are the notable bullet points on AP's UFC resume thus far:

Pereira is ready to claim the pound-for-pound spot, next. He's knocking on Islam's front-door with the activity, fashion, and level of opponents. AP could pass Makhachev if he further teases a fight at Heavyweight or defends the strap again this year. We know where AP stands with his fighting skill and title winning; but that's not the only reason why he is the face of the UFC. Poatan is a fan-favorite simply for his attitude, demeanor, and humbleness. He is loved! From fans of all ages and demographic. Along with Charles Oliveira, AP has shown that learning English isn't needed to become a top draw. The American fans, or fans who only speak English, are intrigued with Pereira simply for his ability to NOT speak. He can sit down and just say "Chama", a word created by him; with his own definition, and people lose their wits in excitement and intrigue. The suspense surrounding this guy has created an internet sensation. The internet finding out he was a recent alcoholic, working at a tire shop via Google Earth made things even more viral for him. His stare, lack of emotion, and introvert vibes strapped him in a 'ship and launched him to the outer space of fighter promotion. Most of the time, it looks like he is just trolling people with his demeanor, but instead people read him as some mysterious folk figure who has a unreadable mind. It's bloody hilarious.

Pereira isn't like your Covingtons, Topurias, O'Malleys, or Garrys of the combat world. He isn't a try hard when it comes to being a draw or moving the fans. Pereira is authentic. He lives in his own bubble; in his own world. He doesn't talk or act like someone that he isn't in attempt to make people support him. McGregor in his prime was the OG of that; the older he got, and the deeper in the bottle he got has things seem forced, but during his prime, McGregor had the confidence that created that persona, unfortunately now he tries to resemble that persona- it used to be authentic which made him the sports greatest attraction ever. Pereira has that authenticity. He just does his thing, and knocks people out.

In the background and outside of the cage, Pereira is a humble & funny person- the relationship posted between he and Glover is hilarious and always good content. That all changes when Pereira gets in fight-mode. He turns into an intense assassin with old-school warrior vibes. From humble father to deathmatch contender in a flip. Starting at the face-offs; ending at the stare... DOWN, Pereira has the best aura in combat sports today. He is a million bucks. Dana and co. are grateful for his services as we near away from the Diaz, McGregor, and Jones era. I recommend they continue to accept his value to the company.

The next big question is what's next for Poatan? Will he turn his heavyweight tease to a reality? Watch and ponder the Adesanya-du Plessis fight in Perth? Will he join that card and defend his strap in effort to take Adesanya's spotlight? The list is intriguing, one thing we do know- Pereira's coach has said that Alex has no interest in a rest from the cage. No chama! Poatan is training and on-call. We can get news tomorrow for all we know. I think it's a safe bet we see him again soon with us cruisin' past the halfway point of the year with only two-Pereira fights under our belts.

There may actually be two fights that Pereira could potentially look at to seek a next target: the mentioned Middleweight title clash in Perth, as well as the interim Heavyweight title clash coming up two weeks from now in Manchester. Both fights having contenders that have once put their eyes on the target of Pereira in Adesanya and interim Heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall. Both would create electric sells along Pereira. There is a few different routes AP can take next, with a few of them being routes that could sky-rocket Pereira into possible GOAT discussions. I sh** you not. Pereira is sitting in a crazy good spot.

Start with the least rewarding route- defending his Light-Heavyweight strap against Ankalaev in Perth; Sphere; or Abu Dhabi. Or the winner of Ankalaev and Jamahal Hill if that's booked prior as a title eliminator. That's a good move for fighter ratings & title picture. Not as good for AP (he smokes both likely) as two other routes would be. First of such, if Izzy were to win back his belt against Dricus in Perth. Adesanya having the title would make a MMA rubber-match one of the best sells of all-time with Poatan. Giving Pereira an opportunity to finally put that rivalry to rest, as well as a chance to become just the 5th simultaneous double-UFC champion in history to join McGregor, Cormier, Cejudo, and Nunes. If that's not appealing enough, Pereira could challenge Tom Aspinall (if he gets past Blaydes) for the interim Heavyweight strap for a crack at wins in three different divisions and possibly title wins in three. Personally, beating Aspinall for the interim would be good enough for me to throw the cap. It would be one of the wildest achievements in sports; imagine him flipping that into a bout with Bones Jones. I'd bet Jones would opt for retirement before that fantasy ever became reality.

It's hard to tell what's next for AP. I for one would like it to be title defense then Adesanya III, but that takes other motions to happen that are in the hands of multiple people. Going to have to sit back and watch how it plays out. I do know, whatever is next, will sure deliver us another special moment. That's all we get when Poatan blesses the MMA world with his presence. Special moments. Rather it's from electric knockouts, bone-chilling stare-downs, or from his iconic aura- there's bound to be a special moment during an Alex Pereira fight-week. All hail Poatan and his Chama magic with this mixtape of thunderous TKOs:

video via MixedMartialAus/X

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