The Ultimate Fighting Championship bears home to some of the most naturally gifted athletes of the world. Every fighter on its roster has specific roots that they come from and are proud of. UFC middleweight champion Alex ‘Poatan‘ Pereira is no different. Despite the newfound fame and glory in the MMA world after his transition from kickboxing, the Brazilian has always made a case to stick to his roots.
The 35-year-old has always been sort of quiet about his private life. As much as Alex loves posting about his training sessions on social media, the man doesn’t really dive deeper into the non-fighting side of life. However, when it comes to representing his ancestors and origins, Pereira takes no step backward. Just like everyone else, ‘Poatan’ has his own unique way of representing his culture and traditions.
Alex Pereira’s walkout was my favorite from ufc 276 pic.twitter.com/APYSVhzmwn
— Dom (@Frittenpate) July 4, 2022
The former GLORY two-division champion walks out to a song called “Itsari” by Sepultura. However, a peculiar thing to notice during his walkouts is that he imitates the style of a cautious hunter, who then shoots an arrow after locking on a target. Before every fight, Alex performs this ritual to connect with his indigenous roots while summoning confidence at the same time.
Speaking about his infamous style in an interview last year, Alex shared, “When I first started to train in kickboxing, my first teacher had indigenous roots. I went home the same day and asked my mom. She said my grandparents were indigenous. It made me feel more confident. We wanted to resurrect my origins and indigenous culture. I made a ritual with the bow and arrow. Then a sequence with the indigenous music and that’s how it started.”
To many fans’ surprise, the UFC isn’t the only promotion where Pereira has used his signature ‘bow and arrow’ ritual during his walkouts. The 35-year-old has been using this ritual since his GLORY days. The walkout song hasn’t changed either for the Brazilian.
Alex Pereira belongs to the Pataxó tribe
Alex Pereita was born in São Bernardo do Campo, a Brazilian municipality in the state of São Paulo. Even though he was born and raised in Brazil, the 35-year-old never forgot his roots. Despite the enigma that the 35-year-old carries around himself, Pereira has never been shy to represent his tribal culture and what they stand for.
For fans who are unaware, ‘Poatan’ comes from the Pataxó tribe. The indigenous tribe boasts little over 12,000 members who reside in the state of Bahia. The tribe had its own Pataxó language, however, it is extinct now. Later, several terms from the extinct language were preserved in Patxoh and Portuguese, which eventually superseded it.
Alex Pereira brought his title back to his Pataxó tribe in Brazil pic.twitter.com/y0ENaRFpGj
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) January 6, 2023
In the middle of the century prior, the indigenous tribe experienced great turmoil. The inhabitants were not only forced out of their homes but their colonies were also turned into private farms. Alex has even shared that he wants to continue representing and helping the tribe.
In an ESPN interview, Pereira said, “I want to build a reputation [for] myself and use it in the future to help the indigenous people… I have the opportunity to assist the indigenous people with that [UFC’s platform].”
‘Poatan’ even wore their native headgear during the UFC 281 ceremonial weigh-ins. Pereira not only pays homage to his traditions through his eye-grabbing walkouts, but he also visits the tribe whenever he gets the chance. After snapping Israel Adesanya’s middleweight title reign last year, Alex took the belt to his Pataxó tribe in Brazil and celebrated along with his people.