Does Alex Pereira have what it takes to accomplish the extraordinary feat of becoming a three-division champion in the UFC? At UFC 307, ‘Poatan’ defended his light heavyweight crown for the third time against Khalil Rountree Jr. But that wasn’t all! He also set the record for the shortest time to accomplish 3 consecutive title defenses in the promotion’s history by taking just 175 days to do so.

Now, with momentum firmly on his side, there have been rumblings of an impending clash between him and Tom Aspinall at heavyweight. The Brazilian has been open to the idea of pursuing the title at 265 lbs. But according to a pair of prominent voices in the MMA sphere, if ‘Poatan’ does arrive at heavyweight, both Aspinall and Jon Jones may need to be wary of this new threat!

Alex Pereira deemed a “dangerous proposition” for Tom Aspinall by Chael Sonnen  

Could Alex Pereira truly stand a chance against someone as formidable as the interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall? The British champion is 8-1 in the UFC and boasts a frightening 75% KO/TKO rate according to Tapology. Even so, Chael Sonnen believes the answer is a resounding ‘yes’.

Known by the fans for his bold statements, Sonnen recently stated in a video shared on his Instagram account, “I cannot guarantee you that the younger, bigger guy in Tom would win. There’s something special about Alex and I can’t quite put my finger on it.”

His reasoning? The UFC veteran explained, “I don’t know that Tom has the skills to just go out and take him down so we might have to take that off of the board. I think Alex would have a really hard time getting up because of the size…” but here’s where things get interesting.

Aspinall has knocked out his last 3 opponents without needing to go to the ground. As such, Sonnen believes “Tom’s probably gonna wanna trade, probably have a little bit of ego like everyone else of let me show all of you and it might work out for him. But it just might be a very dangerous proposition as well. ”

As Sonnen mentioned, Pereira’s knockout power is well-documented, and standing toe-to-toe with him could be a costly mistake. But according to a former ‘champ-champ’ it’s not just Tom Aspinall that has to worry about ‘Poatan’ but the undisputed champion just might find himself in trouble if he decides to step up against the Brazilian!

‘The Notorious’ believes Pereira has what it takes to test Jon Jones at heavyweight  

Conor McGregor knows all about making history in the UFC. But now, McGregor believes Alex Pereira might just surpass him and make history again. In a recent interview with The Schmo, McGregor didn’t hold back in his praise for the Brazilian as he shared, “I think that (heavyweight) would be a viable next move for him. Someone has to go for the three belts. It’s myself or himself. I’m sure one of us will aspire to it in the future.”

The Irishman further stated that Jon Jones may have captured the heavyweight title with a dominant performance against Ciryl Gane, but he isn’t convinced Jones is fully tested at heavyweight. ‘The Notorious’ explained, “I think he poses a lot of problems for Jon, also. That’s a dangerous style for Jon. But it’s a decent one for him because he’s not so big. Jon is new to the heavyweight division…It’s still a dangerous one though. At the core of it, it’s probably even more dangerous. I’d be very excited to see that bout take place for sure.”

For now, Jon Jones is penciled in for a clash against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 but there have been talks about retirement from both men after this fight. As such, it remains to be seen who faces Pereira once the picture at heavyweight becomes clear as there’s still the matter of Aspinall’s interim title unification. But with two UFC figures throwing in their weight behind ‘Poatan’, the question remains: will Tom Aspinall or Jon Jones be able to handle the juggernaut that is Alex Pereira? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!