UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira brought his new belt to his tribe in Brazil. ‘Poatan’ also wore his tribe’s traditional clothing to celebrate his victory.
Alex Pereira entered the UFC after a relatively short stint in LFA.
Pereira lost his first MMA outing but then had 3 matches outside the UFC where won via knockout. He had another 3 impressive matches in the UFC and earned a title shot shortly after. Not only is he impressive, but he also had a long history with former champion Israel Adesanya back when they were still competing in kickboxing.
With his interesting history with Adesanya, Alex Pereira quickly became the center of attention.
Pereira eventually defeated his old kickboxing rival Israel Adesanya at UFC 281. The Brazilian was slightly dominated but had an incredible comeback in the final round. He delivered a combination of punches and the referee stopped the action. The Brazilian came out victorious, becoming the new UFC middleweight champion.
Recently, the 35-year-old was seen in Brazil where he returned to his tribe, the Pataxo. The tribe consists of around 11,800 individuals and resides in Bahia in Northeast Brazil. There, the new middleweight champion celebrated his victory with his tribe. He also wore the tribe’s traditional costume, complete with full-body painting.
Pereira is an indigenous Brazilian and already portrayed his Pataxo tribe several times. He even fired imaginary arrows during his walkout session. He also made headlines during the ceremonial weigh in session for UFC 281, Where he painted his face red and wore his tribe’s headdress.
Despite the dramatic victory, Alex Pereira was exposed for lacking grappling skills. This prompted many middleweight top contenders to push to have the next title shot. Former champion Robert Whittaker is likely to earn the next title shot. Welterweight star Khamzat Chimaev also called him out a few times.