Alex Pereira has accused the UFC of manufacturing public support for the Ciryl Gane versus Josh Hokit heavyweight title fight at UFC 334 on November 14. Daniel Cormier, named directly in those accusations, responded publicly on Tuesday, October 13.
A White House loss that changed everything
Ciryl Gane ended Alex Pereira’s heavyweight run on June 15 at UFC Freedom 250, held at the White House. The Frenchman battered his Brazilian opponent until the referee stepped in, claiming the interim heavyweight title in his very first fight in the division. Pereira had just moved up after a long reign as light heavyweight champion. He complained afterward about shots he considered illegal, without disputing the stoppage itself.
That loss reopened the question of where Pereira’s heavyweight career goes next. Instead of an immediate rematch, the UFC booked Gane against American contender Josh Hokit for the undisputed title, a decision that has fueled debate ever since it was announced.
Hokit arrives at the title fight on the back of a run that caught UFC matchmakers’ attention, and the promotion has pushed the Gane booking hard across its channels since confirming it. That marketing push is exactly what Pereira says he takes issue with, not the heavyweight division’s new contender himself.
Pereira calls out a manufactured push for Gane vs. Hokit
In an interview with Laerte Viana, Pereira said the UFC told him about a fan poll showing support for Gane against Hokit, a poll he said he never personally saw. He accused the promotion of getting respected figures, Daniel Cormier among them, to praise the matchup before it was officially announced, steering public opinion ahead of time. “They are the ones in charge. It’s all kind of manipulated,” Pereira said. He added that he saw Cormier and others call the fight a good one before the UFC made it official.
Pereira also said he asked Cormier directly, through his coach and translator Plinio Cruz, whether beating Ciryl Gane would make him champion. He said Cormier told him no, an answer Pereira said stung coming from someone he considers a friend.
Cormier denies the claim and clarifies his words
Daniel Cormier responded the same day, first on YouTube and then on X. He said he was never told by the UFC to promote this specific fight. He also clarified that his answer to Pereira was about the greatest of all time conversation, not about the title itself: “I didn’t say he wouldn’t be the champ. I said he wouldn’t be the GOAT yet.”
On X, Cormier said he has “always been very fair” to Pereira and that it is fair for him to fight again and earn a title opportunity before an immediate rematch. He added that Josh Hokit “should be fighting for the belt” too. Cormier described a friendship built over five years and said he hopes it survives this episode, calling Pereira “a good guy” and “a tremendous fighter.”
Gane meets Hokit November 14, Pereira waits his turn
Ciryl Gane defends his title against American Josh Hokit on November 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York, with tension already running high between the two fighters on social media for weeks. Hokit has kept up the trash talk aimed at the Frenchman since the booking was announced, a rivalry the UFC has leaned into heavily in its promotion for fight night.
Pereira remains under UFC contract for now. He faces Sergei Pavlovich on December 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with no title on the line. A win there could still revive his case for a heavyweight title shot, a division in which he has fought only once so far.
The episode also highlights the unusual role Daniel Cormier plays inside the UFC. A former two-division champion turned analyst and frequent face of the promotion alongside Dana White, he is regularly asked to weigh in on marquee matchups before they are officially announced, a position that invites exactly this kind of accusation whenever a matchmaking decision draws criticism. Pereira is not the first fighter to question how closely some retired champions work with UFC leadership, though no concrete evidence of a direct order from the promotion has surfaced.
Neither Ciryl Gane nor Dana White has publicly addressed Pereira’s accusations so far. Josh Hokit, for his part, has kept up his social media campaign against the Frenchman ahead of November 14 without directly weighing in on the dispute between Pereira and Cormier.
