Alex Pereira isn’t buying the UFC’s heavyweight title plans, and he’s not staying quiet about it! The former two-division champ has accused the promotion of playing the PR game to get fans behind Ciryl Gane vs. Josh Hokit, even suggesting Daniel Cormier and other big names helped sell a fight that he believes should’ve been his.

‘Poatan’ believes the UFC seeded the fight with influencers before announcing it—a move that left him furious over losing his title shot.

“I spoke directly with Hunter Campbell, and Hunter said this would be the fight, you know, with Gane and Hokit,” Pereira said during an interview with Laerte Viana.

Alex Pereira thought he was next in line to face ‘Bon Gamin,’ especially after addressing his heavyweight plans in a YouTube video. But then, according to the Brazilian, the UFC suddenly pulled the poll card, claiming fans wanted Ciryl Gane to fight Hokit instead.

The catch? Pereira never saw the poll and doesn’t believe fans demanded the fight at all.

“When I released a video (on my YouTube), I was still expecting, like, man, they wanted to book me, you know. But after that video, the organization said they did kind of a poll, a vote,” he explained. “I didn’t see it, and the public wanted it, but after they booked this fight and announced it, I didn’t see it that way. At first the organization said they did a poll and stuff and that this would be the fight.

“I said, ‘Okay.’, I didn’t agree with it, but they’re the ones in charge. It’s all kind of manipulated, you know? I saw some things afterwards, even before they released the announcement, like Cormier and other guys saying it would be a good fight. Like, when I say people, it’s influencers, right, people who have a lot of engagement.”

And Alex Pereira thinks the UFC had a whole game plan to make Ciryl Gane vs. Josh Hokit look like the fight everyone wanted. He pointed the finger at big names like Daniel Cormier, suggesting the promotion used their massive reach to hype up the matchup and get fans on board before officially dropping the announcement.

That way, the UFC could frame the fight as fan-driven rather than a decision that bypassed the 39-year-old.

“The UFC were like, ‘Go ahead and say that this fight is good so when we drop it, the public will already be okay with it.’ They did everything to make people believe this is the fight,” he alleged.

Pereira also questioned Daniel Cormier’s stance on his heavyweight title chances, recalling that the former champion appeared unsure whether beating Ciryl Gane would make him champion.

“You take Cormier, when I spoke to him, I asked him, ‘Hey, this fight, if I become champion against Gane, am I the champion?’ He said, ‘Well, I don’t think so; you have to win’,” Pereira continued. “So the guy has some opinions that don’t make sense… They’re trying to influence people to think that this would be the best fight.”

And this isn’t the first time Alex Pereira has felt the UFC left him hanging. Back in 2025, ‘Poatan’ got heated after reports suggested Jiri Prochazka could get the next light heavyweight title shot instead of him. His coach later blamed the blow-up on a communication mess, claiming the Brazilian believed he’d been promised the next crack at the belt.

Sound familiar? This time, though, ‘Poatan’ isn’t just upset about missing out. He’s questioning whether the UFC deliberately worked the crowd to sell a fight that left him on the sidelines.

This whole mess comes after ‘Bon Gamin’ beat Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250 in June to grab the interim heavyweight title, but the fight didn’t exactly end on good terms. ‘Poatan’ complained about illegal shots to the back of his head and wasn’t happy with Herb Dean for letting Gane off without a point deduction.

A rematch seemed like a real possibility, only for the UFC to throw Hokit into the title picture instead. So, you can see why Pereira isn’t thrilled. Still, he isn’t completely out of the heavyweight title race. He’ll face Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335 in December, and a win could put him right back in the conversation.

It’s just not the immediate title shot he wanted. And judging by his latest comments, the 39-year-old believes there’s a lot more going on behind the UFC’s matchmaking decision than simply picking the best fight for the division.

And while Alex Pereira might be determined to conquer heavyweight, Daniel Cormier hasn’t exactly been sold on the idea. In fact, the UFC Hall of Famer has previously argued that ‘Poatan’ is simply fighting in the wrong division.

Daniel Cormier believes Alex Pereira is better suited to light heavyweight

Daniel Cormier thinks Alex Pereira is chasing gold in the wrong weight class. ‘DC’ has argued that the 39-year-old is better suited to light heavyweight, where he can maximize his power without facing heavyweight opponents’ size advantage or enduring the punishing cut to 185 pounds.

“I believe that Pereira should fight at 205. I think that’s the sweet spot for Alex Pereira,” Cormier explained on The Daniel Cormier Show. “I think heavyweight is big, and 185 is killing him to make weight. 205 lbs is the sweet spot where he can ultimately max out his power.”

‘DC’ isn’t just throwing out an opinion here. The former double champ has ruled both light heavyweight and heavyweight, so he knows exactly how different the two divisions can be. In his eyes, Pereira can unleash his frightening knockout power at 205 pounds without having to deal with the sheer size of the UFC’s biggest heavyweights.

And ‘Poatan’ has already shown just how dangerous he can be at different weights. He entered the UFC at middleweight and snatched the 185-pound title from Israel Adesanya at UFC 281. But making that weight was a serious struggle, and moving up to light heavyweight gave him more room to compete without the punishing cut.

The move has turned out pretty well. ‘Poatan’ captured the vacant light heavyweight championship by stopping Jiri Prochazka in the second round at UFC 295. He then went on a devastating run, knocking out top contenders and defending his belt multiple times to establish himself as one of the division’s most feared fighters.

For Cormier, 205 pounds is where Alex Pereira can truly let his hands fly without giving up too much physically. His devastating left hook, speed, and explosive striking make him a nightmare for light heavyweights, but stepping up to heavyweight means dealing with opponents who can have a significant size and strength advantage. And if those fights turn into extended grappling battles, ‘Poatan’ could find himself facing a whole different kind of challenge.

But the 39-year-old isn’t ready to abandon his heavyweight dream just yet. The Brazilian still has his sights set on becoming a three-division UFC champion, and being passed over for the Gane vs. Hokit title fight has only added fuel to the fire.