“This is just abusive” - Alex Pereira's incredible weight gain after UFC 291 weigh-ins has fans talking
Fans are shocked by the number of pounds Alex Pereira re-gained after weighing in for UFC 291.
On Friday evening, Pereira successfully weighed in for his co-main event fight against Jan Blachowicz. ‘Poatan’ tipped the scales at 205.5 pounds for his first light heavyweight bout after fighting at middleweight during his Octagon tenure thus far.
Pereira left the middleweight division to avoid a drastic weight cut. Therefore, some of the MMA community was intrigued by how much the former UFC middleweight champion would weigh on fight night. ESPN MMA provided a shocking update on Twitter by saying:
“Alex Pereira gained 22.5 in 24 hours since his weigh-in #UFC291”
Alex Pereira gained 22.5 in 24 hours since his weigh-in 🤯 #UFC291 pic.twitter.com/T5wVr2AMlx
The comment section to ESPN MMA’s post was filled with various responses from fans. Some people believe Pereira’s rapid weight gain after weighing in should be illegal: “This is just abusive. Rules need to be updated.” and “I surely can’t be the only one worried about his health due to this dehydrate-rehydrate method he’s utilizing. There have to be some repercussions to this approach.”
Other fans were shocked that Pereira fought in the UFC middleweight division five times: “the fact that this dude was 185 is nuuuttts,” “He's literally a heavyweight. Have fun, Jan,” and “How did this man ever fight at 185?”
Last but not least, some fans weren’t surprised by Pereira’s weight gain after weighing in: “2.7 gallons of water, not that complicated,” and "Yes, that would be called water weight.”
Jon Anik thinks the winner of Jan Blachowicz vs. Alex Pereira could fight Israel Adesanya in September
On September 9, the UFC returns to Sydney, Australia, with Israel Adesanya expected to defend his middleweight title in the UFC 293 main event. The only problem is number one contender Dricus Du Plessis is rumored to not be ready after fighting on July 8.
The UFC is rumored to be uninterested in matching up Adesanya against the other top title contender, Sean Strickland. As a result, the UFC could explore other options for ‘The Last Stylebender’ to fight at UFC 293.
During an interview with The Schmo, Jon Anik had this to say about Adesanya potentially fighting the winner of Jan Blachowicz vs. Alex Pereira for the vacant light heavyweight title:
"It's not crazy to think, right, that maybe you do Adesanya and the winner of Pereira and Blachowicz for the light heavyweight title. Since it's vacant, in Sydney."[5:35-5:51]
Before focusing on what’s next, Jan Blachowicz and Alex Pereira are focused on emerging victorious on Saturday night at UFC 291. ‘Poatan’ last fought on April 8 when he lost his middleweight title against Adesanya by knockout.
Meanwhile, Blachowicz is coming off a split-decision draw against Magomed Ankalaev for the vacant 205-pound title in December 2022.