LAS VEGAS – Many in MMA are dying to see UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira try his luck at heavyweight, but that doesn’t include UFC CEO Dana White.
White is not fully opposed and is not saying no to a move up to heavyweight for Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC), but he’s not nearly as thrilled as others. White believes there’s work to be done at light heavyweight.
“It’s not that I’m not into it,” White told reporters at the UFC 303 post-fight press conference. “The guy was a middleweight and then moves up to light heavyweight. He’s had a couple of fights there and defended his title, but it’s not like this guy has been in the division for two years, and he ran through everybody that’s in the division, and it’s like, ‘Come on, what’s next? At least let him move to heavyweight.’
“… When you see me standing in the middle of these guys, these guys are f*cking monsters. They’re big guys. Imagine if they were both middleweights at one time. It’s insane. But they look good at light heavyweight. It’s a whole other level going up to heavyweight. Even as big as Jon Jones is, as good as Jon Jones is, you know, when Jon Jones was moving up to heavyweight, we were like, ‘This is going to be interesting.’ It wasn’t.”
Pereira completed his second title defense this past Saturday in the main event of UFC 303. He stopped Jiri Prohazka in the second round of their championship rematch with a vicious head kick.
White wants to see Pereira defend his belt again, and when asked about a potential fight with Magomed Ankalaev, White wasn’t opposed to making that next.
On top of having options for Pereira, White also has reservations about the size difference the UFC light heavyweight champion may encounter.
“If he cleaned out the division, and we were like, ‘There’s literally nobody for this guy to fight,’ and he’s 37, if he wants to move up to heavyweight – but that’s not the case,” White responded to a reporter. “You said He was 230 (pounds) today, right? Chuck (Liddell) and Forrest Griffin used to walk around at 230 and they would cut down to 205. That’s not big. Some of these heavyweights are 265, they’re cutting to 265. It’s just a whole other level.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 303.
