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UFC 300 – Dana White’s Last Minute Attempt With Alex Pereira to Save the Main Card Brought to Light by LHW Champ

Published 02/22/2024, 12:12 AM EST

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The main event for UFC 300 is finally settled, and after months of careful consideration, Dana White seems to have made a successful decision. Alex Pereira will be defending his light heavyweight title against Jamahal Hill on the grand stage of UFC 300. However, was Pereira always White’s first choice to headline the event or was it an attempt by the UFC CEO to save the card?

The announcement of the main event received mixed reviews from the MMA community, with some fans expressing support. Although Dana White took his time to unveil the fight, it did not go without criticism. Pereira in his recent conversation dropped a bombshell that he was initially offered to headline the UFC 301, Brazil, but at the last moment, it was changed to UFC 300.

Alex Pereira exposes Dana White’s initial plans

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Alex Pereira clinched the vacant light heavyweight title by defeating Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295. ‘Poatan’ has been calling for a match to defend his title and seems like Dana White has finally taken cognizance of his words. However, was UFC 300 the right choice for White considering the fact that UFC 301 is scheduled to take place in Brazil? According to Pereira, he was supposed to headline the event in Brazil.

In a candid conversation with Ariel Helwani, Alex Pereria dropped that the UFC admin changed his fight at the last moment: “The original verbal agreement, not signed, was to fight the 301 in Brazil Main Event for Jamahal Hill. But a few days ago, they called, and his manager contacted us, saying they were asking him to headline UFC 300.”

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He further added through a translator,” He liked the idea, thinking it’s perfect timing for him to be prepared. So, he just jumped in, for. Well, you can call it intuition or anything else like that, but real talk, when they booked him for Brazil, he said no. He wanted to fight on UFC 300. This was over a month ago.”

Alex Pereira will be headlining his second fight in a row and this might be one of the biggest turning points of his career. Interestingly, this will be Pereria’s inaugural fight under the new contract.

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New day, new contract for Pereira

Alex Pereira became a double-weight champion in a very short amount of time and seems like Dana White has a new favorite in the town. ‘Poatan’ in a conversation with Helwani asserted that he has signed a new contract with the UFC for eight more fights and this Jamahal Hill fight would be his first one under the new contract.

“We’ve got eight fights with the UFC, so let’s see where we go from here. Friday, I signed [a new contract], and now eight more… Yeah, I signed on Friday. [My] relationship with the UFC is really good, [I’m] very grateful by the way the UFC and his management team get together,” said Pereira through a translator.

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Pereira is planning to fight twice in a row but that would depend upon his status at UFC 300. The UFC seems to be inching closer to getting its new top face. What’s your opinion on this take? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Suryakant Das

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Suryakant Das is a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. His fascination with combat sports was sparked by gleeful moments he shared with his father watching wrestling. An ardent fan of UFC star Charles Oliveira, Surya closely follows the sport and keeps tabs on behind-the-scenes action.
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Edited by:

Joyita Das