Alex Pereira and Khamzat Chimaev share similar ambitions. That’s to move up in weight. However, ultimately, it’s up to the UFC and its leadership to determine who gets the opportunity to pursue them. Speaking to reporters following the UFC Houston event at the Toyota Center, CEO Dana White made it clear where the promotion stands regarding their next move.

“Well, he’s(Alex Pereira) one of those guys who always steps up and does whatever we need him to do,” White said. “Whatever that guy wants to do, we’ll work with him.”

But if you thought Khamzat Chimaev would get the same treatment, think again.

“I would like to see him(Khamzat Chimaev) defend his title at a weight first before he talks about jumping around,” Dana White added. “You are gonna keep going up in weight divisions without defending? Yeah. I would rather see him defend.”

This comes after Alex Pereira defeated Magomed Ankalaev in a rematch last year at UFC 320, where he called out Jon Jones for a fight at heavyweight on the historic UFC White House card. Jones has since revealed his struggles with arthritis, which has prevented him from returning to action.

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This effectively puts an end to the Pereira vs. Jon Jones match-up. However, other rumors suggest he could end up facing Ciryl Gane for the interim title, as Tom Aspinall recovers from his double eye poke injury and the subsequent surgeries he needed. Yet, any such fight is yet to be confirmed by the UFC.

Khamzat Chimaev, on the other hand, had called out Pereira for a fight after the Brazilian’s last outing. Even Pereira’s move to light heavyweight didn’t deter him from making the jump to light heavyweight. However, Dana White has made a great point, since ‘Borz’ is yet to defend his middleweight title even once. 

While there’s no doubt about his dominance in the division, the likes of Sean Strickland, who just defeated Anthony Hernandez, and others deserve a shot to win the title from the champion. And Chimaev’s coach appears to understand that as he has revealed a three-man race. 

“I think the UFC is waiting for the fight between ‘Fluffy’ [Hernandez] and Strickland to see what would sell more, the winner of that fight or Imavov, who is the current contender,” Alan ‘Finfou’ do Nascimento told MMA Fighting. 

Chimaev’s coach also had some advice for Pereira.

Nascimento tells Alex Pereira to move to heavyweight and avoid Khamzat Chimaev

While acknowledging the commercial appeal of a Pereira vs. Chimaev showdown, Alan Nascimento made it clear that the risk outweighs the reward for the current light heavyweight champion.

“If I look at the situation from Khamzat’s side, Khamzat vs Pereira would be the fight that would sell the most,” Nascimento said. “… But Khamzat would be fighting even more relaxed if he moved up.”

From Pereira’s perspective, however, the coach believes the Brazilian should think bigger. 

“If I were Pereira, I would not accept that fight because let’s be honest, Khamzat would be [the biggest] challenge. If I were Pereira, I would say, ‘Khamzat, I have a bigger goal—I have to go for the third belt.’”

If Pereira indeed ends up fighting at heavyweight against Ciryl Gane, he could be set up for an eventual encounter with a returning Tom Aspinall. This will give Pereira an opportunity to become a three-division champion, having conquered middleweight and light heavyweight already.

From the looks of things, Nascimento’s wish has come true. Dana White will support Alex Pereira’s move to heavyweight. But Khamzat Chimaev must not be happy about the hand he is dealt. Do you think White’s decision is fair?