Alex Pereira is set to headline the UFC 335 co-main event against Sergei Pavlovich on December 12 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The Brazilian is looking to rebound from his heavyweight debut loss to Ciryl Gane, and he is still pushing for a rematch with the champion. The UFC made the heavyweight bout official during its UFC 332 broadcast.
A Costly Debut at Heavyweight
Pereira moved up to heavyweight for the first time in June at UFC Freedom 250, staged on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. Ciryl Gane dropped him with a right hand and followed up with heavy strikes until referee Herb Dean stepped in at 1:27 of round two. It was Pereira’s first stoppage loss since his April 2023 rematch with Israel Adesanya, leaving him 1-2 in his last three Octagon appearances. He has not said whether he will stay at the 265-pound (120-kilogram) heavyweight limit or return to light heavyweight, the 205-pound (93-kilogram) division he once ruled before also winning the middleweight title, a run that made him a two-division champion before he ever set foot on a heavyweight scale.
Pereira Keeps Pushing for a Gane Rematch
Pereira disputes how the fight ended. He has argued that Gane landed repeated shots to the back of his head during the sequence that led to the stoppage. On Instagram, he posted a mock-up listing setbacks from Gane’s career, including losses to Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones, captioned simply Champion. In a September video, he said the rematch was going to happen and that he wants a third UFC title, which would make him the promotion’s first three-division champion.
Josh Hokit Isn’t Buying It
Not everyone in the heavyweight division is on board with Pereira jumping the line. Josh Hokit, riding his own win streak at heavyweight, mocked a photo of Pereira posing alongside UFC executive Hunter Campbell, saying the Brazilian was still collecting eight-figure paydays without fighting for a title. Hokit has made his own case for a shot, arguing his path to a belt, built on three wins this year, is more earned than handing a rematch to a fighter coming off a loss at heavyweight.
A No. 2-Ranked Test
Sergei Pavlovich is no stepping stone. The Russian carries a 21-3 record and sits at No. 2 in the heavyweight rankings. He has won three straight, over Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Tallison Teixeira, the last by first-round knockout in May. His only recent blemish is a first-round knockout loss to Tom Aspinall in November 2023, in a fight for the same interim heavyweight title Gane later inherited. Based in Moscow after growing up in Russia’s Rostov region, Pavlovich has spent three years chasing another title opportunity, and a win over a name as big as Pereira would put him right back in the conversation. Few heavyweights on the roster can match his one-punch power, which makes this booking a genuine threat to Pereira’s own standing in the division rather than a tune-up.
Gane Defends Against Hokit First
Before any rematch talk goes further, Pereira will have to wait on Gane. The Frenchman, unbeaten since March 2023, won the interim title twice before being elevated to undisputed champion after Aspinall withdrew, still recovering from an eye injury suffered in their first meeting. Gane defends the belt against Josh Hokit on November 14 at Madison Square Garden in UFC 334, streaming on Paramount+ in the United States and on RMC Sport in France. On the same card, Amanda Nunes comes out of retirement to face former training partner and reigning bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison in a co-main event billed as one of the year’s biggest grudge matches in its own right. A Pereira win over Pavlovich on December 12 would put him squarely back in line for a shot at the Frenchman. Later that same night, Charles Oliveira defends his BMF title against Diego Lopes in the UFC 335 main event, capping the promotion’s final numbered card of the year with three separate title futures on the line.
Pereira and Pavlovich have both built their reputations on finishing fights before the scorecards matter. Our ranking of 4oz MMA fight gloves compares the top model from every brand worn inside the Octagon.
