Soon, several UFC legends could hang up their gloves as retirement looms for fan-favorites like Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya, and Alex Pereira, all approaching their 40s with decorated careers. But there’s no need to stress as the next generation is already rising. Among them, Pereira’s sons have begun their combat sports training and are quickly making headlines.

Last year, during a UFC 300 embed clip, Alex Pereira’s son Alessandro Vidal Silva revealed his plan to fight at UFC 400 and declared he’s “gonna be a UFC champ.” While many dismissed this as the ambitious talk of a teenager, earlier this August he once again set the MMA world ablaze by showing off his mouthpiece with the UFC 400 logo after a sparring session, proving that his ambition is serious.

Currently, the two train alongside their father and former UFC champion who happens to be Pereira’s coach, Glover Teixeira, as a recent social media clip highlighted.

“Rate UFC champ Alex Pereira’s 14-year-old son’s striking.👇 This one is the better one at MMA of Alex’s two sons. And you could tell he is Alex’s son just based on this footage alone.😁” wrote MMA-oriented page ‘PAM’ on X.

Alex Pereira is guiding his sons away from the traditional Brazilian football route and into MMA to help them pursue their dream. Even though Alessandro Vidal Silva and Lohan Vidal Silva are still under 15, they already show signs of becoming elite mixed martial artists.

The brothers are developing complementary skills, with striking emerging as their strongest asset. Still, some fans have already begun spotting gaps in ‘Poatan’s son.

Early Signs of a Familiar Style Are Sparking Debate

Alex Pereira comes from a deep kickboxing background and spent nearly two decades sharpening his striking before entering the UFC. As a result, his fights have largely been striking-based, leading many observers to view wrestling-heavy opponents as his biggest weakness. Now, as Pereira’s son focuses heavily on striking, fans have started drawing direct comparisons with his father.

In fact, one fan pointed out, “Yes, he has no ground game so looks very much like Alex’s son.” Despite that criticism, Alex Pereira defeated fighters like Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev, both known for strong grappling.

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Even then, Pereira never truly tested his ground game against someone like Khamzat Chimaev. Naturally, another fan raised a similar concern, commenting, “Today’s MMA is heavy on takedown defense, dude should go big on that.” While many regard Pereira as one of the sport’s greats, his fighting style has always exposed visible flaws.

Analysts often highlight the Brazilian star’s unorthodox footwork and stance, which can look predictable and leave openings for counter-strikers to exploit defensive gaps. So, when fans watched Alex Pereira’s son train with the same approach, concerns quickly followed.

Even so, Pereira built a reputation for having one of the strongest chins in MMA and suffered a knockout only once in the UFC. That history led another fan to question whether his son shares the same durability, asking, “Most important is, does he have the same chin?” That said, not all reactions leaned negative.

Alex Pereira’s son trains under experienced coaches like Glover Teixeira and Plinio Cruz, who bring strong striking and grappling knowledge. Over time, that environment could help him round out his overall skill set.

Likewise, Pereira himself showed clear improvement in takedown defense by stuffing all attempts from Magomed Ankalaev. One fan pushed back against the criticism, writing, “He is training under supervision of two LHW UFC champions, but it’s you guys from x that can guide him into becoming a better fighter”.

Of course, Pereira’s rise to the top did not come easily. Early in life, he struggled with bad habits, while working at a tire shop in São Paulo. Because of that history, some fans worry about patterns repeating. One commented, “Clearly emulates Alex, but that’s not a great thing. Alex has a ton of poor habits that he gets away with via his power threat”.

Eventually, Alex Pereira turned his life around and conquered kickboxing before transitioning into MMA. While Pereira’s approach often appears one-dimensional and heavily striking-focused, his left hook has stopped elite fighters like Sean Strickland and Jiri Prochazka. Unsurprisingly, fans already see flashes of that weapon in the next generation. One wrote, “Left hook looks just as lethal.”

Still, even with that devastating left hook, some fans feel the Alex Pereira-style blueprint may not fully translate to pure boxing. What do you make of his son’s skill set? Share your thoughts.