Sean Strickland’s teammate reveals using ‘good will’ to decline Alex Pereira clash: “I do not have a path to victory”
Sean Strickland's teammate, Chris Curtis, remembers how he chose not to fight Alex Pereira due to his immense size and power.
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Chris Curtis remembers not fighting Alex Pereira in the middleweight division (via Instagram/Imago)
Alex Pereira has now established himself as one of the most dangerous fighters on the UFC roster. The knockout king has dominated most of his opponents and has defended his light heavyweight title three times last year. However, ‘Poatan’ initially competed in the middleweight division and Sean Strickland’s teammate, Chris Curtis, made a startling revelation.
Curtis recently talked about the time when he was offered to fight Pereira at middleweight back in 2022. As someone who likes to fight and take the challenge, the ‘Action Man’ decided to reject the opportunity. The middleweight fighter admitted using ‘good will’ from the UFC to reject the matchup because of how he thought the matchup would go.
I don’t usually say no unless your name’s Alex Pereira, then I’ve definitely said no… I was like, ‘You know what? I don’t have to answer for this, so I’m just going to say no. I’ve said yes to everything else, I’m going to cash that good will in and say, ‘F*ck no’ here.’ I say yes to every fight but that one. I was like, ‘I do not have a path to victory here. I’m fine.’
Chris Curtis via MMA Junkie
Curtis explained that he had seen Pereira in public and was astonished by the sheer size of him. As a result, the American fighter didn’t see it fitting to go against ‘Poatan’ at middleweight. Pereira was always huge for the 185 division, but was able to gain around 50 lbs more on fight night.
"I say yes to every fight, but that one, I was like, 'I do not have a path to victory here. I'm fine.'"#UFCVegas101's Chris Curtis reveals the time he used his "good will" from UFC to decline Alex Pereira. ?
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 8, 2025
(via @MikeBohn) pic.twitter.com/rcNOblwMqn
This gave Alex Pereira the size and power advantage over other middleweights until he lost to Israel Adesanya. Since then, he moved up and has been continuing a similar momentum. Expect Adesanya, Pereira has defeated all his opponents and Curtis is glad that he is not on that list.
Chris Curtis talks about his recent fall-out with longtime friend Sean Strickland
Chris Curtis and Sean Strickland share a strong friendship and are longtime training partners at Xtreme Couture. However, their bond hasn’t been without its challenges. Curtis once admitted that tensions between them escalated to the point where he seriously considered confronting Strickland physically.
Curtis has been inconsistent with his MMA career, but is now focused on getting close to the title fight as soon as possible. On the other hand, Strickland will fight for the championship at UFC 312. In a recent interview, Curtis revealed that he is more focused on himself than correcting his relationship with the ‘Tarzan.’
He is going out there to fight for a world title and get his belt back. We don’t have time to focus on sh*t that’s not conducive to the goal…I want him to f*cking succeed. I want him to succeed in the cage, I want him to succeed in life — even if there are times where it’s like, ‘’Bro I can’t f*cking stand you.’ We’ll be fine, we’ll figure it out later.
Chris Curtis via UFC Vegas 101 media day
Strickland has always been known for his unapologetic personality, who often gets into controversies for his remarks. He lately found himself in hot waters for making Islamophobic comments after the recent terror attack in New Orleans. Nevertheless, all this has helped the fighter to gain a massive fan base and become one of the top stars on the roster.
Related: Alex Pereira Fight Record: How many defeats does “Poatan” have in his career?
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Ameetosh Dash
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