Ever since reclaiming the sunshine heavyweight title at UFC 320, Alex Pereira has had his sights set on transferring as much as heavyweight. Following the Las Vegas occasion, the Brazilian star revealed in an interview that he hopes to face Jon Jones at subsequent 12 months’s White Home card in June, marking his debut within the 265lbs division.
And after the chaotic occasions of UFC 321, the place Tom Aspinall’s long-awaited return was minimize brief as a consequence of an unintended eye poke from Ciryl Gane, Pereira couldn’t resist taking a jab at each fighters and the heavyweight division as a complete. Now, per week after the Abu Dhabi card, ‘Poatan’ has shared his ideas on whether or not Aspinall truly give up or if his incapacity to proceed was justified.
Alex Pereira Shuts Down Claims That Tom Aspinall Stop at UFC 321
Reacting to the controversial heavyweight title important occasion, Pereira had posted a video on social media proper after UFC 321 displaying himself nodding with a sly smile as Aspinall advised the ringside docs and referee Jason Herzog that he couldn’t proceed.
He captioned the clip with a problem to Jon Jones, urging him to avoid wasting the 265lbs division, a name that the previous heavyweight champion later accepted. Nevertheless, Pereira hadn’t defined his response till now.
In a current interview with MMA Hoje, the reigning 205lbs kingpin shared his ideas on the state of affairs. He stated, “You’ll be able to’t actually know what occurred. Solely he is aware of.”
Providing a balanced take, Pereira added to his rationalization. “I imply, we all know he wasn’t doing so effectively within the combat, however we’ve seen conditions the place a man isn’t doing nice, then one thing occurs, like a penalty, and the man comes again higher.”
His remark referred to the opening spherical, the place Aspinall was tagged early and repeatedly focused by Gane’s jabs, which even precipitated a busted nostril.
Nonetheless, Pereira defended Aspinall in opposition to claims of quitting, saying, “Some individuals are saying he was faking it. Man, actually, you may’t say that. It’s exhausting to grasp. One poke appeared to go deeper within the eye, and he didn’t complain about it, however he grabbed the opposite one from the skin. However we don’t know the impression there both, you realize?”
ALSO READ: Tom Aspinall Joins Halloween Enjoyable With Hilarious Jab at Ciryl Gane
Alex Pereira reacts to Tom Aspinall vs Ciryl Gane:
“One poke appeared to go deeper within the eye, and he didn’t even complain about it. However he grabbed the opposite one from the skin.
We’ve seen worse circumstances the place the blokes saved preventing. Visibly worse. However solely he is aware of how he actually… pic.twitter.com/X37qjqLlHE
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 31, 2025
Finally, Pereira gave Aspinall the advantage of the doubt, concluding, “We’ve seen worse circumstances the place the blokes saved preventing. Visibly worse. However solely he is aware of how he actually felt in there.”
Whereas figures like Chael Sonnen, Dana White, and T.J. Dillashaw have criticized Aspinall for supposedly giving up, Jones has taken issues even additional, altering his profile image to a duck with a watch patch and even displaying up on the DBX 4 weigh-ins on a horse sporting one.
Amid all of the mockery, Pereira’s take stands out as probably the most balanced. In the meantime, Aspinall’s situation nonetheless seems unsure, as Andy Aspinall lately revealed. Followers now await updates on when the Englishman would possibly return for a correct protection of his heavyweight crown.
