UFC 281: Adesanya vs. Pereira is almost here. Alex ‘Po Atan’ Pereira will meet Israel Adesanya for a third time in his career at Madison Square Garden in November. ‘Po Atan’ already has two wins over ‘Stylebender’ in kickboxing. This makes the anticipation for their third bout through the roof.

The Brazilian Pereira comes into the bout with a 3-0 UFC record. His last win came via a K. O of Sean Strickland. However, Pereira has gone through tougher battles on his way to a UFC top spot.

Alex Pereira battled his demons to make it to the top

Alex Pereira had a really rough childhood in Brazil. He spent his teenage years in debilitating alcoholism. This habit may have robbed us of one of the most destructive fighters the sport has ever seen. Fortunately, for him and us fight fans, that wasn’t the case.

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Pereira quit school by the age of 12 and found a job for himself at a tire shop. He picked up skills as a mechanic from there as well. There, he spent his days hauling tires and drinking iced cachaca- a Brazilian rum made from sugarcane. Once he developed a taste for the drink, his habit got out of control, and became a heavy drinker.

Pereira says, “By the time I was 16 or so, I was drinking about a liter a day of rum at work, usually with a few beers mixed in there as well. I was an alcoholic, full-blown alcoholic. That was just the lifestyle of working in that place. I didn’t know any different. It just crept up on me.” 

He used to get into fights because of his drinking. However, he was able to handle himself because of his size and power. This gave him the idea to take up fighting for a career. Thus, he started kickboxing at the age of 21.

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The gym was populated with native Brazilians who gave him an insight into his own heritage. “I’m 100% native Brazilian,” Pereria added. Motivated by the story of his heritage, ‘Po Atan’ picked up the tools of the trade that made him an exceptional martial artist.

The meaning of ‘Po Atan’

Alex Pereira’s nickname ‘Po Atan’ comes from the native Brazilian Tupi language. ‘Po’ means hand and ‘Atan’ stands for something stone-like. The name definitely suits Alex Pereira because of the way he knocks people out with that left hook. As an amateur, he amassed a 25-3 record with all 25 wins coming via knockouts.

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Pereira has won the GLORY Middleweight championship and their interim light-heavyweight championship. This makes him the first simultaneous double champ in the history of the promotion. Coming November, he will look to add the prestigious UFC belt to his trophy cabinet with a third win over Israel Adesanya.

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What are your predictions for UFC 283? Do you think Pereira can complete a hat-trick of wins over Adesanya? Let us know in the comments below.