SUMMARY
- Alex Pereira last fought at UFC 295 and beat Jiri Prochazka to win the light heavyweight division title.
- The Brazilian recently left both soccer and MMA fans baffled with a unique leg check technique.
Alex Pereira has been gearing up for his next fight ever since his light heavyweight title win at UFC 295. The Brazilian fighter knocked out Jiri Prochazka to become the fastest fighter to win two titles, in just seven fights. Since then, there have been reports about his possible appearance at UFC 300. Many have even claimed that Poatan could move up to heavyweight, and his latest fitness update added fuel to the fire as well.
Recently, the 36-year-old made waves on social media with a training video that has caught the eye of both MMA and soccer fans. Pereira was training with his partner, who had pads and checked a leg kick from behind his front foot. For some context, in soccer, this skill is called a ‘Rabona.’ It is when the player decides to chip the ball with their outside foot, by wrapping it behind the foot that they’re standing on.
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This would be mostly a go-to move for those who do not feel as confident on their weak foot with their dominant foot. It certainly looks like Pereira’s kickcheck has left MMA fans baffled, as it is not seen in the octagon often.
Some wrote on Instagram, “The brazilian soccer genes took over for a sec,” while another user wrote, “You can’t take football out of a Brazillian.” Brazilian soccer players have the reputation to be flashy and display jaw-dropping skills on the soccer field, with the likes of Ronaldinho, Neymar Jr, and Ronaldo Nazario being prime examples.
In addition to that, some users pointed out that it is a tactic used in Muay Boran, the ancient style of what is known as Muay Thai today.
Plinio Cruz is the Muay Thai specialist behind Alex Pereira
It is no secret that Pereira is an absolute force in kickboxing, the martial art that he has perfected. But it would be quite surprising for fans to realize that he has been displaying techniques and skills used in Muay Thai as well. The credit for that would go to his trainer, Plinio Cruz. For those who don’t know, Cruz is Pereira’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach, who has a track record in professional fighting as well.
He has competed in several organizations including Bellator and M-1, as well as CFFC. Cruz fought in the heavyweight division of the CFFC and held the championship at one point as well. The heavyweight fighter’s last bout was in 2019 when he lost to Douglas Humberto Queiroz Silva.
New UFC middleweight champ Alex Pereira was awarded his BJJ brown belt by his coach Plinio Cruz last night 📸 @pliniocruzmma pic.twitter.com/wj1UbQmYih
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 16, 2022
The man may well and truly be the mastermind behind Pereira, mainly since he has a judo black belt to his name and an impressive Muay Thai black degree. That speaks at length about his resume as a fighter, and how there aren’t many other more qualified than him to train one of the best fighters in the world.
Thanks to Cruz’s training, Pereira has shown drastic improvements in recent times as well. He received his brown belt in BJJ back in November 2022, from none other than his trainer. It certainly looks like Pereira could take great leaps in his UFC career in the future, and Cruz would play a pivotal role in his success.