Alex Pereira reflects on humble beginnings by revisiting the old tire shop where he worked in latest UFC Embedded episode
UFC light heavyweight king Alex Pereira has had a rough childhood and went through a lot of struggles to get into his current position today. 'Poatan' recently decided to re-visit his humble roots in Brazil.
In the latest episode of UFC 307 Embedded, Pereira took his son to a tire shop where he used to work while growing up. The Brazilian shared how working there helped him achieve success in the fighting world. He said:
"I always go back to the tire shop. I spent a lot of time there, worked a lot of hours. I think about how much it has helped me develop the strength I have today... Those jobs that required a lot of force definitely helped me... Growing up in the favela was a good thing. You're faced with challenges, with competition. I think that was important because you're faced with adversity in the fighting world."
Check out Alex Pereira's comments below (4:35):
Pereira is set to defend his throne against Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307 on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Pereira is coming into this fight with four consecutive victories, while Rountree Jr. is riding a five-fight win streak. So, it will be interesting to see who emerges victorious come fight night.
Alex Pereira issues a challenge to Khalil Rountree Jr.
In the lead-up to UFC 307, Khalil Rountree Jr. has claimed, on multiple occasions, that he would not shoot for a takedown in his upcoming battle against Alex Pereira.
But the light heavyweight champion does not seem too convinced by Rountree Jr.'s words. In an interview with Kevin Iole, 'Poatan' stated that he would believe it if 'The War Horse' makes a public announcement declaring to forfeit a percentage of his purse in case of shooting a takedown.
"Honestly bro, everybody says that before trying to shoot a takedown against [Pereira], so it's hard to believe. The only way [I'll] believe is [if] Khalil goes public and says, 'I promise I'm not going to shoot a takedown on this guy, and if I do, I'm going to donate a percentage of my purse to charity, then [I'll] believe and say let's bang."
Check out Alex Pereira's comments below (2:05):