Christmas Celebrations Dampened at Alex Pereira’s Home as Fan Judgement Haunts Champ

Alex Pereira has had quite a year in 2024. Three successful title defenses, delivering devastating knockouts to Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303, and most recently, Khalil Rountree Jr at UFC 307 in August, Pereira has a lot to be thankful for. Although it won’t be wrong to assume that he absolutely deserves some good rest and family time, the Poatan decided to take some well-intended way-less-brutal knockout pillow punches with his son.

And he absolutely killed it with fake faints, set-up punches, and grappling as though there’s no tomorrow. Pereira first shared a picture with his sons, Alessandro Vidal Silva and Lohan Vidal Silva, wearing matching red-themed Christmas sweater that fronted a “Chama” lettering across the chest area. He captioned, “

Merry Christmas to you and yours! Chama.” All good up until this point…

There is just this one video from Christmas Day that is currently making the rounds on the internet which MMA Orbit captioned, “

The grind doesn’t stop at Alex Pereira’s Christmas party.” And we believe fans of Magomed Ankalaev just couldn’t help dropping some mean reviews in the comment section. We say this because there’s still one challenge that the Brazilian is yet to face is that of the de facto No. 1 contender at 205 pounds. Despite a 13-fightunbeaten streak, Ankalaev finds himself bereft of a title shot ever since his battle for a vacant belt against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282 ended in a split draw. But looks like, Pereira isn’t even ready to entertain the idea of fighting Ankalaev, to begin with.

Pereira took to social media, and said, “

It won’t be Ankalaev! [crying emoji].” Five hours in, Ankalaev issued his response, calling Pereira a “Chicken.” But what drew such a brutal response from fans on a video that was all fun and innocent as it could get. Well, it had to do with his grappling. Magomed Ankalaev, a product of Dagestani combat sports, seamlessly blends his striking with a strong wrestling game, making him a well-rounded threat in the light heavyweight division. His ability to control opponents on the ground, dominate clinch positions, and defend takedowns helps dictate the pace of his fights.

Reacting to the viral clip of ‘Poatan’ grappling with his son, fans weren’t quite impressed with the way Pereira defended himself on the ground. It has now allowed fans to mock the former dual-champion.

Fans dismisses Alex Pereria as a softie

In his MMA career, Alex Pereira has demonstrated a solid defensive guard, as well as the ability to escape dangerous situations. He holds a black belt in BJJ which was given to him by his current coach Plinio Cruz. His black belt not only speaks to his technical ability but also to his dedication to refining all aspects of his game. However, fans on social media don’t quite agree with it. Let us take a look at what they had to say about his latest video.

One user pointed out how Pereira’s appears to dominate his father in certain positions. However, he did remind him that such a skill level may not work against Ankalaev, “So his son is rag dolling him and you expect him to beat Ankalaev?” Ankalaev is a high-level wrestler and can control fights on the ground. Pereira’s ground game has been a point of criticism in the past, and his wrestling skills have been seen as an area that needs improvement. One user did remind him of that and commented, “He’s not beating Ankalaev like that.”

Historically, Pereira’s ground game has been questioned, as he initially relied on his striking to dominate opponents. While he holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, one user feels he has a long way to go, “We all knew that ground game was soft.” In recent times, ‘Poatan’ has been putting significant effort into improving his wrestling and ground game. Pereira is fully aware that to reach the next level in MMA, one fan appreciated his effort, “Bro has been working on his ground game non-stop.”

Alex Pereira’s sons appear to be inheriting their father’s physical traits—size, strength, and power—while also learning solid grappling skills. One user reminded how the next generation in his family could be better-rounded fighters and commented, “His sons are gonna be fkn great lol they got his size and power but will have grappling.”

Some fans believe that Ankalaev might struggle against the improvements Pereira has made in his ground game. While Ankalaev is known for his wrestling defense, one user seems to be backing the Brazilian, “I don’t think Magomed can defend like that.” Over the past few months, he’s been sharing videos of his wrestling drills and sparring sessions, showing that he’s serious about evolving as a fighter. One user took the time to remind the MMA world about it, “Alex doing a lot of wrestling these days.”

Some fans remain skeptical about Alex Pereira’s ability to handle elite wrestlers like Ankalaev, but many are optimistic about his growth. His recent wrestling-focused training suggests that he’s putting in the work to address any weaknesses in his game. Do you think Alex Pereira is a high-level wrestler? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.