If persistence is the key to success, Alex Pereira is certainly living by that motto. Despite suffering a brutal defeat at the hands of Ciryl Gane at UFC White House, the Brazilian has remained adamant about securing a rematch. Recently, ‘Poatan’ once again took to social media to call out ‘Bon Gamin’. However, Michael Bisping wasn’t impressed with Pereira’s refusal to move on from the loss.

The former UFC middleweight champion stated on his YouTube channel that Gane won “impressively,” though he acknowledged that the Frenchman landed some illegal shots to the back of Pereira’s head. Still, Bisping believes Pereira’s refusal to accept the defeat, coupled with his repeated attempts to secure a rematch, makes him a “sore loser.”

Josh Hokit clearly agreed with Bisping’s assessment. The heavyweight fighter reposted ‘The Count’s’ post on X and shared his unfiltered response.

“100% with @bisping on this. Sore loser, p—y, all the same,” Hokit wrote on X. “I liked Pereira before I got to the UFC, but you can’t dump life-changing money on low IQ guys from third-world countries and expect them to stay hardened. Westerners are built to conquer and climb the highest peak. Alex sees Herb Dean as the guy trying to keep him from buying back his old tire shop.”

Beyond the derogatory remarks, Josh Hokit echoed much of the same argument Bisping made in his video. Both pointed to the Brazilian’s repeated criticism of Herb Dean for failing to penalize the illegal shots, along with his persistent calls for a rematch against the Frenchman. In their view, Pereira’s campaign appears to be an attempt to position himself for another title opportunity despite not having done enough to earn one.

The undefeated heavyweight went a step further, arguing that the former two-division champion should pick up at least one win before asking for a shot at the interim title again. Hokit initially called for a grudge match with Alex Pereira, but he now believes the Brazilian taking on someone like Sergei Pavlovich, whom he considers a favorable matchup, would make more sense.

“As a fan, that fight makes no f—–g sense,” Hokit wrote in another tweet. “I watched you get demolished. How about a more favorable matchup like Sergei [Pavlovitch], who is basically a striker & way less athletic than Ciryl. How about you get one f—g win in this weight class before you are gifted another title shot.”

Alex Pereira’s lack of adaptation to the heavyweight division has been one of the major criticisms surrounding his move to 265 lbs. Besides Josh Hokit, heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall also pointed out that ‘Poatan’ looked sluggish against Gane at White House. Because of that, many believe the Brazilian should first secure a win at heavyweight before facing the athletic Frenchman again.

However, while Hokit has explained why he believes Pereira doesn’t deserve another title opportunity, the 28-year-old has also made a case for himself to receive a shot at heavyweight gold.

Josh Hokit calls out Ciryl Gane for a title shot  

Dana White revealed at the Contender Series post-fight press conference that Tom Aspinall’s return could face an even longer delay than expected. The heavyweight champion’s eye condition still requires medical attention, which could further derail his title defense. The UFC CEO made it clear that the heavyweight division will continue moving forward in Aspinall’s absence, although he didn’t provide many details about the champion’s situation.

With Aspinall’s medical hiatus potentially stretching beyond a year, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Englishman eventually vacates his title. Hokit remains convinced that the champion won’t return anytime soon because of his lingering injuries. If that happens, Hokit believes his own path to the heavyweight crown could begin by getting past Alex Pereira and then earning a title shot against Ciryl Gane.

“100% if Tom were in fact coming back, but he’s not,” Hokit stated in another post on X. “So me & Ciryl for the strap. If Chama deez nuts can win one fight at hwt this yr…Or if he wants to wait until early ’27 I will spank him right after I take care of Ciryl.”

In terms of pure heavyweight achievements, Hokit currently has more wins than Pereira. He recently defeated Derrick Lewis at UFC White House, on the same card where ‘Poatan’ suffered his loss. The 28-year-old also owns a statement victory over Curtis Blaydes, a win that propelled him into the top five. By that measure, Hokit has certainly accomplished more as a 265-pounder.

Still, Alex Pereira has already cemented his status as one of the sport’s legends and remains a major crowd draw. In the UFC, that kind of star power can sometimes outweigh almost everything else, especially when it comes to matchmaking.

That said, with Aspinall’s future uncertain and Pereira continuing to campaign for another shot at Gane, it will be interesting to see how the promotion ultimately handles the heavyweight division as 2026 draws to a close.