Last Man to Beat Alex Pereira in Kickboxing Thinks Interim UFC Heavyweight Title Fight Favors Ciryl Gane

Artem Vakhitov, the last man to defeat Alex Pereira in kickboxing, thinks the move up to heavyweight will cost Poatan.

Last Man to Beat Alex Pereira in Kickboxing Thinks Interim UFC Heavyweight Title Fight Favors Ciryl Gane

Ciryl Gane and Alex Pereira [via Bleacher Report and UFC.com]

In Short
  • Alex Pereira aims to become the first triple champion in UFC history against Ciryl Gane.
  • Artem Vakhitov believes Pereira's weight gain for the heavyweight division may hinder his striking ability.
  • Ciryl Gane is training with Vakhitov to prepare for the matchup, seeking to outstrike Pereira.

This summer, Alex Pereira is about to do something unprecedented. ‘Poatan’ will try to become the first triple champion in UFC history at the White House against Ciryl Gane. However, Artem Vakhitov, a former foe from his kickboxing days, believes a move up to heavyweight could ultimately compromise the Brazilian.

For the uninitiated, Alex Pereira and Artem Vakhitov faced off twice during their GLORY kickboxing careers. Pereira drew first blood, winning the fight for the light heavyweight title via split decision in January, 2021. Vakhitov would go on to win their rematch in the fall by majority decision to regain his belt.

Now, over 5 years removed from their first encounter, the former kickboxer has some thoughts on Alex Pereira’s move up to heavyweight. Vakhitov believes the weight Poatan will need to gain to facilitate his move up will slow him down during striking exchanges. The former GLORY light heavyweight champion said this when a reporter asked him about his Brazilian rival gaining 40lbs ahead of the White House card.

You can see by his current shape, he gained extra weight. He’d need it for wrestling. But it won’t play in his favor when it comes to striking. Ciryl is a natural Heavyweight, and Alex now weighs almost as much as him. It will play against him.

Artem Vakhitov on Alex Pereira gaining 40lbs to face Ciryl Gane

At the end of last month, the UFC double champion shared an update on how the bulking up for his next fight was going. He shared a picture of a weight scale on his Instagram with an accompanying caption reading, “247 pounds. Chama.” Pereira is assuredly going all-in for his move to the UFC’s heavyweight division.

That said, Vakhitov does have a point. This extra weight will definitely help Pereira in grappling exchanges, making him more difficult to take down. However, against someone who employs a striking-heavy style and moves as fluidly as Ciryl Gane might just benefit from a slower, less mobile Alex Pereira.

Nonetheless, Pereira’s style isn’t really built around being light on his feet like Gane’s style. The Brazilian relies more on standing right in front of his opponent, disrupting their combos and rhythm with his powerful strikes. Therefore, the added weight may not end up being a deciding factor in this matchup.

Moreover, the two-time UFC light heavyweight champion is not worried about the transition to a new weight class. He recently told his fans that they will soon “see the transformation.” However, Artem Vakhitov’s assessment may be based more on his experiences from sparring with Ciryl Gane.

Ciryl Gane enlists Artem Vakhitov’s help to prepare for Alex Pereira

Ciryl Gane has been public enemy number one for a while now. Fans began turning on ‘Bon Gamin’ not too long after his abysmal showing against Jon Jones.

Things only got more worse after he earned a controversial split-decision win against Alexander Volkov at UFC 310. This trend of fans turning on Gane continued after he eye-poked Tom Aspinall at UFC 321. Fans labelled him as a dirty fighter, creating a viral highlight reel of Gane’s many transgressions.

Ciryl Gane, Alex Pereira
Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane face-off [via La Seuer+]

It’s safe to say the former interim heavyweight champion needs a win right about now. This urgent requirement may have been the motivation behind Ciryl Gane enlisting Artem Vakhitov’s help ahead of UFC Freedom 250. Vakhitov recently shared a clip of him sparring Gane on Instagram. The clip showed them sparring lightly at range, donning a protective gear.

It seems Gane wants to gain every advantage over Alex Pereira before sharing an octagon with him in June. Training with the last man to defeat Poatan before his transition to MMA is a good way of going about it. After all, Gane will likely need to outstrike Pereira to win this upcoming matchup, given how much the latter’s grappling has improved.

Former light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev was unable to take down the Brazilian across 13 attempts in their two fights. So beating Pereira isn’t a simple matter of taking him down and controlling him on the ground like it was earlier in his MMA career.

Furthermore, beating a heavyweight version of Pereira, who many experts have predicted to carry more knockout power than ever before, is a daunting proposition. Hence, the Frenchman will need to sharpen every tool in his arsenal to be ready come June.

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