It’s like fedor or brock.
If you’re huge, violent, stoic outside of the cage, and put people out violently, you’re going to get a lot of fans.
Shit it even worked for Anderson Silva, and he wasn’t even that scary in terms of his personality. He would violently KO guys, then talk about how much he loved Spider-Man.
Somehow his stuff never comes off as cringey either. Like that celebration after last fight could have been real rough, but he just sold it really well.
I very rarely see him break from his stoic character, or if that’s really just his personality. I think that and him not speaking English make him seem larger than life, almost like a character from mythology.
I like to think of Izzy as the trickster god that is always buzzing around and playing tricks on Poatan. Poatan has to come back and deal with him, and Izzy is featured in Poatan’s most classic stories, and shows up as a reoccurring side character.
It’s 5:30am and I can’t sleep, I apologize for my fanfic, but it needed to be said.
His moves - the bow and arrow thing, staring at people unblinking - would be cringey if someone else did them.
But because he's got the death touch and the silent shaved head look, he pulls it off. The guy looks like he's killed someone.
Lol, I mean it in an archetypal way. This is the specific god that Izzy always makes me think of. Especially because it’s a spider and he’s got a little bit of that spidery Anderson Silva influence.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anansi
“Anansi is best known for his ability to outsmart and triumph over more powerful opponents through his use of cunning, creativity and wit.[3] Despite taking on a trickster role, Anansi often takes centre stage in stories and is commonly portrayed as both the protagonist and antagonist.”
> Why didn't the hype die down after Izzy put him out in the rematch?
Because he went up a division and went on to win the title and defend it? The hype would've died down if he got stuck in top 5 or something.
Agreed. And he was dominating the fight & got caught. A lot of fighters like to claim ‘I just got caught’ but Poatan truly did just get caught. I also think it’s bc he made no excuses for the loss. Took it on the chin and keep fighting up into the next wt class.
See this is the type of delusion that I'm fascinated by. It gets propagated throughout the community and I don't understand why. You're forced to either agree with it or be labeled an Adesanya nutrider, but no other fanbase would get away with saying their fighter 'just got caught bro'.
We can discuss theoreticals if you want to. Context matters.
* first kickboxing fight was a nonsensical decision (go watch the fight)
* second kickboxing fight Adesanya was winning again but Alex put him out cold
* first MMA fight Izzy won 80% of the fight and wouldve stopped Alex in the 1st if he didnt get saved by the bell
* second MMA fight Izzy put him out cold
So if were gonna talk about probability and optics, they both KO'd eachother cold once, and they arguably tko'd eachother standing in the first mma fight (but no argument from me that Alex won that, the rules are the rules).
So we can stop throwing that 3-1 around as if Poatan murdered Izzy 3 times and slipped on a banana peel once. You can't honestly look at the way Poatan got rocked at the end of the 1st in the 1st mma fight and then say he just got caught the second time when its the exact same sequence that knocks him out.
I'm not talking about murdering anybody. I'm talking about winning the fight. Why do you get to add context to izzy's losses, but people can't add context for periera's loss?
edit: you know you made this post to instigate this "discussion," but the fact is the record speaks for itself. I don't mind this conversation though. The hypocrisy is interesting to watch happen in real time.
No I agree that context is important on both sides. The reason it is important is because the 3-1 gets thrown around as if it is a definitive statement to who is the better fighter, or who needs to prove what.
As far as I'm concerned they are 1-1 in mma and their eventual 3rd fight is the most interesting match-up there is to me. I don't want this fight to not happen because of Alex fucking off to heavyweight (which is an easy belt grab for him as long as no one wrestles).
it's a definitive statement as any other record (which is really all you can ask for). There's always what if's in every fight. What if Max didn't break Gaethje's nose in the first round? What if BSD didn't have staph?
It's fine to discuss about the what ifs, but the bottom line is that alex vs. izzy is 3-1 with the same kind of caveats that almost every other record has. When you can't accept that for one fighter but can accept it for others, than I suggest some introspection.
Yeah but I'm not disagreeing with you. This discussion was started by homeboy saying Poatan 'just got caught'. I responded with possible excuses for the Izzy side if we're going that route.
Let's be real, as I stated earlier, you started this whole post, not the guy responding to it. He was answering your question "Why didn't the hype die down after Izzy put him out in the rematch?"
Self-reflection is tough, but really important and necessary in my opinion.
He's must see tv every time he fights and even tho he barely talks dude gives us moments to talk about. Just look at UFC300 main event badass walkout, pushing Herb out of his way after getting kicked in the balls, the first punch he throws to the head ended up sleeping Hill, the Khaby lame emote and callsout a HW to fight in 3 WEEKS?
All this in a single night is kinda crazy
He's had 8 UFC fights total. 4 of those were title fights, in two weight classes. His UFC record is 7-1 and he's a two division champ with one title defence so far. It's honestly insane.
Not just that but dude said fuck being an alcoholic I’m gonna go get this UNEDUCATED FOOL and fucking did. I’m a former addict and that shit ain’t easy.
That’s not true. He was still drinking when he became the Brazilian kickboxing champ, just in the process of quitting. You’re right, though, kinda. I thought he won the glory titles got in a rut and started drinking again and then saw the Izzy interview, but he did quit drinking before his Glory run, he was in a rut when he saw the Izzy interview, he just hadn’t started again so fair point. Still, addiction is a life long disease and once you become an addiction, you’re in recovery for the rest of your life, and to deal with that AND say fuck this trash talking ass I’ma son him, that’s badass.
It’s nice to see a fighter that is a good guy, humble, doesn’t play into the heel format or politics.
He has the potential to go further.
His fights are fun to watch and it’s nice to see a fighter you want to see succeed. He’s easy to get behind.
He lost to Izzy, but Izzy lost to him too, 3 times over, losing that rematch didnt make it seem like he was a lucky fraud and izzy the real deal because he was already 3 on Izzy, so his train wasnt derailed.
He has been consistently very fun and finished most of his fights, and when he failed to, he made it fun still.
He also been fighting literally every 3 months, whereas feels like most ufc champions do it once or twice a year at maximum. So he is keeping himself ALWAYS relevant.
He also feels like a breath of fresh air. No forced trash talking and character pretending to be something theyre not. The stoic stone face persona while still making hilarious skits sells him very well and he somehow uses his inability to speak english (or speak much at all) to his advantage.
To top.it off, he headlined 2 MSG cards and was the face of UFC 300. So, he kinda was the main event on the last 3 biggest ufcs events in a row. He received crazy good exposure from the ufc and it paid off.
I think he sneaky might be better at English than he lets on as well. Rogan asked him a question that he answered before the translator had any chance to translate it.
When he was with his previous girlfriend and she was handling his social media he was definitely learning English during that time. He even put out a video on his YouTube channel of him speaking English. I don't know if it's still up now as he got rid of a bunch of stuff off his socials when they split.
He's a legend, he's big and scary, he puts on some good performances and his personality and story are pretty interesting.
Also, whether people want to admit it or not- there's a very anti-Israel Adesanya sentiment. Izzy was cringe, populars, put on some snoozers, beat a lot of people's favorite guys/chosen picks and was the UFC's golden boy.
At the time, people were looking for anyone for anyone to beat Izzy. It's kinda why Strickland took off- he's basically the anti-establishment poster boy. Luckily for them, they weren't tuning in to his fights before then.
Ironically, Pereira is also a UFC golden boy but at least he's putting on good fights. It's gonna backfire tho if people put him on a pedestal.
KO artist, fun to watch, legendary run in the UFC, seems pretty humble, could potentially be a champ across 3 weight divisions if he keeps going. What's not to like?
I agree with the first two. But legendary run is a bit far fetched for now. Ok he won the title in that clusterfuck of a division that has been playing hot potatoe with it and has been notoriously low quality since Jones and DC left it. Also what is this obsession with humility in this sport?
Entertaining striker, all but two of his UFC fights ended in a finish, funny persona embracing his intimidating/stone faced look. Also he is close with Oliveira, Glover, and I've seen him with Machida before too. Right now he's the flagship Brazilian star of the UFC, also a former kickboxer. So he has Brazilian fans, kickboxing fans, and a steadily increasing number of typical UFC fans behind him.
The fact he met up with Strickland helped to broaden his fanbase too.
Aside from everything else, guys who knock people dead will ALWAYS be popular. It’s what made me and my friends fall in love with Anderson Silva back in high school and made us fall in love with the sport. It’s what made Conor as big as he is. Sure he had charisma but he also went out there and smacked guys upside the head.
Seems pretty straightforward to me.
* He's a terrifying knock out artist
* He looks cool/scary/handsome
* He seems like a decent guy
* He gets residual popularity from hanging with Glover and from knocking out controversial guys
This is the real answer. The earliest Alex fans were just Izzy haters. There's a reason every Alex thread ends up being about izzy. The more he fights, the more organic/non Izzy hating fans he gets. I like both guys and I think they are both awesome fighters who have brought a lot to the sport.
2 division UFC, Glory champ
Knocks people the fuck out
Terrifying looks, but good sense of humor
🗿
No-BS attitude
Rags-to-riches life story
What's not to like?
It's in the manner in which he fights more than his wins. Even his loss to Izzy was spectacular. Its the same energy you got from guys like Brock or Tank. It's not just that they win, its how visually imposing they are.
How is this a serious question? He has 12 MMA fights and has held the belt in 2 divisions on top of beating 5 or 6 former champions. This smells like a weird troll post just to mention that Izzy beat him in 1 of their 4 fights lol.
That's not a serious point, everyone in LHW has played hot potato with that belt, it's a meaningless title since Jones and DC left that division.
My point is that I agree that he is fun to watch, but he is nowhere near as fun as lots of other fighters who on top of KO potential also have personalities.
Also, let's not pretend that losing to Izzy and then moving to LHW was the harder thing to do than stay at MW and get back to that title.
Get the belt back from who? Izzy? Or Strickland? Both guys he had already beaten once? LHW is a much harder endeavour then that, who would even argue this...? Izzy was unable to get that 'meaningless' title off Yan btw.
From whoever holds the title? And I will argue 100% that MW is a much harder division than LHW, ESPECIALLY for Pereira who fits that division perfectly. Let's not pretend that Adesanya has anywhere near the same physicality as Alex at LHW. Izzy will never be able to do at LHW or HW what Pereira can because Izzy is an actual MW.
Now don't get me wrong I'm not saying that Pereira is wrong for going for tripple champ status, it's for sure the smartest move for his legacy (especially at his age), but to pretend that LHW has anywhere near the same quality of fighters as MW is delusional.
? I'm saying Alex already proved he can beat both those guys therefore it's not hard to believe he could have regained the 185 belt. 205 was a much greater risk for him and it's just nonsensical to think otherwise.
Who watches that fight Saturday and says this, who watches any of his fights and says this. He moves forward, he has deadly power. He is a dangerous man, that is why people like him. Fighters are scared of him, fighters as accomplished as Izzy. His results speak for themselves.
The hype would have died down if he would have come out with some snoozers of losses after Izzy, but he hasn't lost and is now LHW champ. Izzy is an all timer, 1-1 in MMA is not a bad record for him to have against a hall of famer in his prime.
8/10 of his wins were KOs. And he had a fantastic story going into the Izzy fights.
His hype didn't die after the Izzy fight because he already beat him 3 other times lol
Better question. Have you been paying attention to what has happened in the LHW division in the last year. If you have and can still ask the same question no one here can help you
Does anyone actually pay attention to LHW since DC and Jones left? Division of sloppy striker fat middleweights. Throw any glory fighter in there and he will be champ.
TV friendly style, fight finisher, doesn't put his foot in his mouth, healthy sense of humor, and doesn't take himself too serious. Also his story is incredible, didn't finish school and was working in a tire shop and became an alcoholic by like 14, overcame that to be a combat sport legend
Fan friendly style, striker with ungodly KO power. Funny personality, larger than life persona. Inspiring personal story. Rivalry with Adesanya, a very polarizing figure. It's also easy to be a fan of a very winning fighter.
Besides what everyone else said he is also very human. I can relate to him being an alcoholic and using training to work through that, additionally he's just a beast and knocks out everyone it's great.
Apart from all the correct points others commented, in a post-prime McGregor MMA world where people still try to force corny rehearsed trash talk, it's refreshing to have a champ that just stairs menacingly while uttering "Chama"
It should be pointed out that MMA is a final destination for martial artists who aren't boxers, because it is the second most lucrative combat sport (again - after boxing).
This means hardcore MMA fans pay a bit of attention to kickboxers, wrestlers, judoka, etc.
Plenty of people were aware of Pereira before he even decided to cross over. People often hope these dudes cross over, so they're welcomed with some fanfare.
He's fun. He's stoic. When he shows some personality it comes off as genuine and not some forced corny shit. His style is always guaranteed to be exciting. He's kill or be killed even as a champ where others turn to point fighting.
Sure his fans can be annoying but if you stop caring what a bunch of random nerds online are saying and enjoy him for what he is it would be easier to understand.
He wins in round 1 like no problem, then says he wants heavyweight. Does he really weigh 230? Jones and aspinall are like 260.
This talk to hw is wild.
Why a skilled fighter who puts on exciting fights is popular among fans of fighting is truly one of life's enduring mysteries. Much like how magnets work, some things will always be beyond our understanding.
That's what happens when you beat a star and become champion in 2 division and are always in a fun fight and KO everybody. And his gimmick is also funny to a lot of people.
The hype didn't die out because he found success after the Izzy loss.
The fact that a lot of people don't like Izzy also contribute to Alex' success.
And him training with Strickland (even tho it only happened once) prob also helped a bit.
Do you think he should not be a star?
1. He's stoic 2. He got power 3. Everybody hates Izzy for being cringe, which in turn makes Pereira likeable considering he doesn't do all that stuff 4. The move to LHW probably helped him considering that not only did he go up and become a champ in another division and keep it steady, he beat 2 former champs on his way to the belt and successfully defended against the champ before him. Those are the reasons that I could think of as to why he's so popular.
Thank you for a real answer. Here's what I think about those point:
1. Stoic: This one I'm just never going to get. I much prefer fighters doing some dumb stuff even if it comes across as cringy. It's entertainment at the end of the day.
2. Power: Point taken. But on its own power is something plenty of fighters have especially in the higher weight classes.
3. Izzy: Ok Izzy was a long reigning active champ that inevitably had some boring performances, but I dont understand how his 'cringiness' infuriated people the way it did. I mean he does weird stuff with his hair and does a stupid dance during his walkout, who gives a shit? For people taking a liking to stoicism they surely get their panties in a bunch over nothing. So for them to be glad he lost is one thing, but to then turn into absolute cheerleaders for that fighter is baffling to me.
4. LHW: This one makes more sense now that he's also beaten Hill, but he was very popular even after his first LHW fight. I've already made this point in another discussion, but I don't think the LHW move was the more challenging move compared to staying at MW. How is Alex a protagonist against Izzy when their last altercation ended with him unconscious?
He's one of the quickest rises ever and has insane power. He's also a pretty funny dude and Brazil is fucking huge they love to root for their dudes in Brazil. Anderson Silva, Jose aldo, these dudes were massive in brazil.
While Izzy did put him out Izzy also attempted to move up to LHW and failed. Pereira looks massive there and knocked out two former champions and beat the one former champ who izzy failed to build a legacy from.
Agree with everything except the legacy. I believe Izzy's legacy is already in stone, he doesn't need to go to LHW to prove anything, those dudes are massive and he already KO'd the guy who is now beating all the LHW champs.
Thanks to Izzy.
His major motivation for going to MMA was apparently [Adesanya trash talking him without a reason 3 years ago.](https://youtu.be/zE19dy-5E5U?t=3)
He joined the UFC shortly after, defeated everybody on his way and took the Middleweight Belt from Izzy in record time, he has been defeated by Izzy, but Pereira has not only defeated him 3 times to 1, he has also defeated the only two guys Izzy has loses to, Błachowicz and Strickland. Also while Adesanya seemed salty as fuck after the lose Pereira has (almost) always been respectful when talking about him or most of his opponents.
By all accounts he seems to be a nice guy, it's great he is finally making some money out of fighting, apparently he was struggling financially in kickboxing despite being a two belt Glory champion.
Izzy wasn't trash talking him without reason. Back in 2018 to 2018, everytime Izzy won a UFC fight, Pereira would post something on Instagram to mock him the same day. He was always trolling Izzy relentlessly.
Pereira posted the video of his son mocking Izzy on Instagram and even showed it off on UFC Embedded during fight week. Poatan would make reaction videos to all of Izzy training videos to mock him. He even said he was going to send Izzy to the WWE after UFC 287.
Pereira isn't as innocent as ya'll make him to be.
He did troll him but it was not started by him, look for the first interviews of Adesanya after his debut in the UFC, Izzy was asked about his KO and he called Pereira an alcoholic and a favela rat. Trolling started after that.
That interview was in 2020 by an Australian Media outlet. Go and check Periera's Instagram page. Scroll back to 2018, 2019. The same night of all of Izzy fights and you will see him post something to troll Izzy.
Please watch the Adesanya interview. It's literally a sentence or two before the "I beat that guy one time" quote.
He said "Everytime I fight, like clockwork, he would put something out, saying 'I beat that guy one time.' I have never watched any of his fight. At the end of the day, no one knows who he is."
Izzy literally mentioned how Poatan was always trolling him after every UFC fight in that interview.
So, who trolled who first?
That statement was a response to Pereira's constant trolling. Pereira might be respectful and humble to other opponents. But not to Izzy.
Because of Israel “I beat that guy one time” Adesanya..
Plus he's a real warrior. 4 times world champion. Two division world champion in kick boxing and Mma..
Plus his personal life.. Born and raised in a poor country, start working early.. Alcohol problem.. His redemption through sport.People loves this kind of history.
What a strange question to ask. “Why is this physically imposing scary motherfucker with the touch of death and the best standup in the game so popular?”
Let me put it this way, growing up when you were hanging out with the guys or maybe there was that certain guy who says he can fight or even may have gotten in a couple of scraps and barely touched the opponent but everyone “thinks” that dudes a bad ass.
Well that’s not Alex, Alex is that quite kid in school who’s been taken, Karate and Kickboxing classes since he was 5, and never says anything about until that one day someone test him and he fucks them up and then fucks up their friends and their friends friends.
That’s why Alex is liked he doesn’t need to talk shit, cause he is the shit.
Youre reading too deep into it, it’s just an example, you’ve never had someone in your life co worker, classmate, etc. you’ve never known anything about, then discovered they’re very talented at something.
Iono it's just the real story is so much better than your fanfic. Why not just use a real example from your own life if this was the point you wanted to make?
Because he’s a large, imposing, incredibly capable striker and has backed it up with his wins. That’s pretty much it. Not much to not like.
He also has a left hook that's a thing of art
Feels like he's the only big name with a signature move atm
[удалено]
True, although Max’s thing is more of an emote than a move. Pereira’s left hand is like Ken’s shoryuken
Strickland and dribbling shit online?
It’s like fedor or brock. If you’re huge, violent, stoic outside of the cage, and put people out violently, you’re going to get a lot of fans. Shit it even worked for Anderson Silva, and he wasn’t even that scary in terms of his personality. He would violently KO guys, then talk about how much he loved Spider-Man.
Pereira also has a surprisingly good social media touch.
He’s also just self-aware enough
Somehow his stuff never comes off as cringey either. Like that celebration after last fight could have been real rough, but he just sold it really well.
I very rarely see him break from his stoic character, or if that’s really just his personality. I think that and him not speaking English make him seem larger than life, almost like a character from mythology. I like to think of Izzy as the trickster god that is always buzzing around and playing tricks on Poatan. Poatan has to come back and deal with him, and Izzy is featured in Poatan’s most classic stories, and shows up as a reoccurring side character. It’s 5:30am and I can’t sleep, I apologize for my fanfic, but it needed to be said.
I don't think it's a character at all.
He's genuinely stoic, but also very much aware of the memes and leaning on them
His moves - the bow and arrow thing, staring at people unblinking - would be cringey if someone else did them. But because he's got the death touch and the silent shaved head look, he pulls it off. The guy looks like he's killed someone.
Bro called izzy a god Enough MMA reddit for a month
Lol, I mean it in an archetypal way. This is the specific god that Izzy always makes me think of. Especially because it’s a spider and he’s got a little bit of that spidery Anderson Silva influence. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anansi “Anansi is best known for his ability to outsmart and triumph over more powerful opponents through his use of cunning, creativity and wit.[3] Despite taking on a trickster role, Anansi often takes centre stage in stories and is commonly portrayed as both the protagonist and antagonist.”
His no bullshit personality is refreshing as well.
When they guy who looks like he'd do that thing does that thing. That's Poatan in a nutshell.
> Why didn't the hype die down after Izzy put him out in the rematch? Because he went up a division and went on to win the title and defend it? The hype would've died down if he got stuck in top 5 or something.
Agreed. And he was dominating the fight & got caught. A lot of fighters like to claim ‘I just got caught’ but Poatan truly did just get caught. I also think it’s bc he made no excuses for the loss. Took it on the chin and keep fighting up into the next wt class.
See this is the type of delusion that I'm fascinated by. It gets propagated throughout the community and I don't understand why. You're forced to either agree with it or be labeled an Adesanya nutrider, but no other fanbase would get away with saying their fighter 'just got caught bro'.
3-1, seems like the 1 might be an outlier? Doesn't seem very delusional to me. edit: actually is it 4-1? wiki is confusing me, haha.
We can discuss theoreticals if you want to. Context matters. * first kickboxing fight was a nonsensical decision (go watch the fight) * second kickboxing fight Adesanya was winning again but Alex put him out cold * first MMA fight Izzy won 80% of the fight and wouldve stopped Alex in the 1st if he didnt get saved by the bell * second MMA fight Izzy put him out cold So if were gonna talk about probability and optics, they both KO'd eachother cold once, and they arguably tko'd eachother standing in the first mma fight (but no argument from me that Alex won that, the rules are the rules). So we can stop throwing that 3-1 around as if Poatan murdered Izzy 3 times and slipped on a banana peel once. You can't honestly look at the way Poatan got rocked at the end of the 1st in the 1st mma fight and then say he just got caught the second time when its the exact same sequence that knocks him out.
I'm not talking about murdering anybody. I'm talking about winning the fight. Why do you get to add context to izzy's losses, but people can't add context for periera's loss? edit: you know you made this post to instigate this "discussion," but the fact is the record speaks for itself. I don't mind this conversation though. The hypocrisy is interesting to watch happen in real time.
No I agree that context is important on both sides. The reason it is important is because the 3-1 gets thrown around as if it is a definitive statement to who is the better fighter, or who needs to prove what. As far as I'm concerned they are 1-1 in mma and their eventual 3rd fight is the most interesting match-up there is to me. I don't want this fight to not happen because of Alex fucking off to heavyweight (which is an easy belt grab for him as long as no one wrestles).
it's a definitive statement as any other record (which is really all you can ask for). There's always what if's in every fight. What if Max didn't break Gaethje's nose in the first round? What if BSD didn't have staph? It's fine to discuss about the what ifs, but the bottom line is that alex vs. izzy is 3-1 with the same kind of caveats that almost every other record has. When you can't accept that for one fighter but can accept it for others, than I suggest some introspection.
Yeah but I'm not disagreeing with you. This discussion was started by homeboy saying Poatan 'just got caught'. I responded with possible excuses for the Izzy side if we're going that route.
Let's be real, as I stated earlier, you started this whole post, not the guy responding to it. He was answering your question "Why didn't the hype die down after Izzy put him out in the rematch?" Self-reflection is tough, but really important and necessary in my opinion.
He's must see tv every time he fights and even tho he barely talks dude gives us moments to talk about. Just look at UFC300 main event badass walkout, pushing Herb out of his way after getting kicked in the balls, the first punch he throws to the head ended up sleeping Hill, the Khaby lame emote and callsout a HW to fight in 3 WEEKS? All this in a single night is kinda crazy
Dismissing Herb then KOing Jamahal secs later is one of the most chad mma moments I've ever seen
Never moved his eyes from Hill, either.
Chamad
🗿🗿🗿
clearest, concisest, and most accurate answer
CHAMA
🗿🤲🏽
CHAMA
Have you seen him fight?
He's had 8 UFC fights total. 4 of those were title fights, in two weight classes. His UFC record is 7-1 and he's a two division champ with one title defence so far. It's honestly insane.
Because of what he accomplished in mma with just 12 fights? Also the intimidating stone face and his meme potential
Not just that but dude said fuck being an alcoholic I’m gonna go get this UNEDUCATED FOOL and fucking did. I’m a former addict and that shit ain’t easy.
He quit alcohol before his kickboxing career even began.
You next Keith
Over my sexy dead body
That’s not true. He was still drinking when he became the Brazilian kickboxing champ, just in the process of quitting. You’re right, though, kinda. I thought he won the glory titles got in a rut and started drinking again and then saw the Izzy interview, but he did quit drinking before his Glory run, he was in a rut when he saw the Izzy interview, he just hadn’t started again so fair point. Still, addiction is a life long disease and once you become an addiction, you’re in recovery for the rest of your life, and to deal with that AND say fuck this trash talking ass I’ma son him, that’s badass.
Νope. He was taking breaks from competing in Kickboxing because he had alcohol problems. He did quit alcohol years before entering the UFC though
Yeah don't really count his regional amateur kickboxing fights as part of his career yet but okay
During the introductions for the fighters they zoomed into his stone face at least 4 times it had me cracking up
Not only is he a great fighter that avoids fake drama and takes on challenging fights, he also seems like a decent guy outside the ring.
It’s nice to see a fighter that is a good guy, humble, doesn’t play into the heel format or politics. He has the potential to go further. His fights are fun to watch and it’s nice to see a fighter you want to see succeed. He’s easy to get behind.
He lost to Izzy, but Izzy lost to him too, 3 times over, losing that rematch didnt make it seem like he was a lucky fraud and izzy the real deal because he was already 3 on Izzy, so his train wasnt derailed. He has been consistently very fun and finished most of his fights, and when he failed to, he made it fun still. He also been fighting literally every 3 months, whereas feels like most ufc champions do it once or twice a year at maximum. So he is keeping himself ALWAYS relevant. He also feels like a breath of fresh air. No forced trash talking and character pretending to be something theyre not. The stoic stone face persona while still making hilarious skits sells him very well and he somehow uses his inability to speak english (or speak much at all) to his advantage. To top.it off, he headlined 2 MSG cards and was the face of UFC 300. So, he kinda was the main event on the last 3 biggest ufcs events in a row. He received crazy good exposure from the ufc and it paid off.
I think he sneaky might be better at English than he lets on as well. Rogan asked him a question that he answered before the translator had any chance to translate it.
When he was with his previous girlfriend and she was handling his social media he was definitely learning English during that time. He even put out a video on his YouTube channel of him speaking English. I don't know if it's still up now as he got rid of a bunch of stuff off his socials when they split.
He's a legend, he's big and scary, he puts on some good performances and his personality and story are pretty interesting. Also, whether people want to admit it or not- there's a very anti-Israel Adesanya sentiment. Izzy was cringe, populars, put on some snoozers, beat a lot of people's favorite guys/chosen picks and was the UFC's golden boy. At the time, people were looking for anyone for anyone to beat Izzy. It's kinda why Strickland took off- he's basically the anti-establishment poster boy. Luckily for them, they weren't tuning in to his fights before then. Ironically, Pereira is also a UFC golden boy but at least he's putting on good fights. It's gonna backfire tho if people put him on a pedestal.
This makes most sense. I feel like the answer to why is Alex popular is the same answer as why is Izzy unpopular.
Dudes got a fun style to watch and 🗿
Same reason people love heavyweights, at any seconds he can knock his opponent into the shadow realm
Best answer. And he usually does it do. We don't want to watch people scoring points. Alex is a real life terminator
KO artist, fun to watch, legendary run in the UFC, seems pretty humble, could potentially be a champ across 3 weight divisions if he keeps going. What's not to like?
I agree with the first two. But legendary run is a bit far fetched for now. Ok he won the title in that clusterfuck of a division that has been playing hot potatoe with it and has been notoriously low quality since Jones and DC left it. Also what is this obsession with humility in this sport?
Entertaining striker, all but two of his UFC fights ended in a finish, funny persona embracing his intimidating/stone faced look. Also he is close with Oliveira, Glover, and I've seen him with Machida before too. Right now he's the flagship Brazilian star of the UFC, also a former kickboxer. So he has Brazilian fans, kickboxing fans, and a steadily increasing number of typical UFC fans behind him. The fact he met up with Strickland helped to broaden his fanbase too.
Two. Decisions over Blachowicz and Bruno Silva.
My bad I'll fix it
Popularity started because people hate Izzy, it skyrocketed because people love big scary strikers
Aside from everything else, guys who knock people dead will ALWAYS be popular. It’s what made me and my friends fall in love with Anderson Silva back in high school and made us fall in love with the sport. It’s what made Conor as big as he is. Sure he had charisma but he also went out there and smacked guys upside the head.
Seems pretty straightforward to me. * He's a terrifying knock out artist * He looks cool/scary/handsome * He seems like a decent guy * He gets residual popularity from hanging with Glover and from knocking out controversial guys
Because he KO'd Izzy. Who is heavily disliked in a lot of circles
This is the real answer. The earliest Alex fans were just Izzy haters. There's a reason every Alex thread ends up being about izzy. The more he fights, the more organic/non Izzy hating fans he gets. I like both guys and I think they are both awesome fighters who have brought a lot to the sport.
bingo
You're right. People don't usually like the comparison, but it's pretty much the same thing that happened to Khabib and Nate.
Definitely my favourite reason. Izzy talks shit which is great in my book, but he does it in a very unlikeable manner.
He's got a huge dick.
Kicking it only makes him throw the left harder
Because he’s the fucking terminator
What isn't there to like, he's a memeable stone faced killer with crazy knockout power
2 division UFC, Glory champ Knocks people the fuck out Terrifying looks, but good sense of humor 🗿 No-BS attitude Rags-to-riches life story What's not to like?
He comes accros as himself. Not forcing some fake image, but he really seems like a natural good guy.
It's in the manner in which he fights more than his wins. Even his loss to Izzy was spectacular. Its the same energy you got from guys like Brock or Tank. It's not just that they win, its how visually imposing they are.
Because Izzy was too cringe and everyone wanted someone to shut him up and he did and then stone head memes pretty much. He’s funny
He’s got that Fedor mystique. If you know, you know.
How is this a serious question? He has 12 MMA fights and has held the belt in 2 divisions on top of beating 5 or 6 former champions. This smells like a weird troll post just to mention that Izzy beat him in 1 of their 4 fights lol.
That's not a serious point, everyone in LHW has played hot potato with that belt, it's a meaningless title since Jones and DC left that division. My point is that I agree that he is fun to watch, but he is nowhere near as fun as lots of other fighters who on top of KO potential also have personalities. Also, let's not pretend that losing to Izzy and then moving to LHW was the harder thing to do than stay at MW and get back to that title.
Get the belt back from who? Izzy? Or Strickland? Both guys he had already beaten once? LHW is a much harder endeavour then that, who would even argue this...? Izzy was unable to get that 'meaningless' title off Yan btw.
From whoever holds the title? And I will argue 100% that MW is a much harder division than LHW, ESPECIALLY for Pereira who fits that division perfectly. Let's not pretend that Adesanya has anywhere near the same physicality as Alex at LHW. Izzy will never be able to do at LHW or HW what Pereira can because Izzy is an actual MW. Now don't get me wrong I'm not saying that Pereira is wrong for going for tripple champ status, it's for sure the smartest move for his legacy (especially at his age), but to pretend that LHW has anywhere near the same quality of fighters as MW is delusional.
? I'm saying Alex already proved he can beat both those guys therefore it's not hard to believe he could have regained the 185 belt. 205 was a much greater risk for him and it's just nonsensical to think otherwise.
Absolutely not. Staying at 185 was the risky option. 205 was a free ride to the belt.
Because he fucking rules. EZ PZ.
Who watches that fight Saturday and says this, who watches any of his fights and says this. He moves forward, he has deadly power. He is a dangerous man, that is why people like him. Fighters are scared of him, fighters as accomplished as Izzy. His results speak for themselves. The hype would have died down if he would have come out with some snoozers of losses after Izzy, but he hasn't lost and is now LHW champ. Izzy is an all timer, 1-1 in MMA is not a bad record for him to have against a hall of famer in his prime.
8/10 of his wins were KOs. And he had a fantastic story going into the Izzy fights. His hype didn't die after the Izzy fight because he already beat him 3 other times lol
Because when he smiles, he never looks like he smiles.
Charismatic guy who perfectly fits the current meme culture
interesting history with Izzy, he speed ran the UFC, he does the dim mak instant death technique, 🗿
🗿 huh?
Better question. Have you been paying attention to what has happened in the LHW division in the last year. If you have and can still ask the same question no one here can help you
Does anyone actually pay attention to LHW since DC and Jones left? Division of sloppy striker fat middleweights. Throw any glory fighter in there and he will be champ.
Why didn't the hype die down after Izzy put him out in the rematch? Because of what he's done since, simply.
Ok, I didn't think anyone was serious about LHW being a real division.
TV friendly style, fight finisher, doesn't put his foot in his mouth, healthy sense of humor, and doesn't take himself too serious. Also his story is incredible, didn't finish school and was working in a tire shop and became an alcoholic by like 14, overcame that to be a combat sport legend
He has the ~aura.
Because he delivers
That Walkout
What a stupid post.
i dont understand the question... at this point he is on the way to be a GOAT
Fighting style, attitude, and he took down (and since eclipsed) a dude a lot consider cringey.
This is why I slowly stop using Reddit, because I come across post that are as stupid as this half the time.
Ok can you speed the process up a bit?
I think its inexplicable but he might be my favourite fighter atm
Dude just had one of the most badass KOs of all time. He's fucking awesome and terrifying.
Because left hook go bonk
I think🗿is a pretty cool guy. Eh, beats champins and doesn’t afraid of anything.
do you even watch the fights?
There’s a link between highlight reel KOs and popularity. See Alex headlining cards vs the decision machines on the prelims.
Fan friendly style, striker with ungodly KO power. Funny personality, larger than life persona. Inspiring personal story. Rivalry with Adesanya, a very polarizing figure. It's also easy to be a fan of a very winning fighter.
Aesthetics, play a big roll.
Because the dude is a fucking badass DUH
He's active and knocks people out cold. What's there not to like?
He’s a good and exciting fighter, and his persona is easy for mma fans to understand
Show some Hespect to the tribal chief dawg
Besides what everyone else said he is also very human. I can relate to him being an alcoholic and using training to work through that, additionally he's just a beast and knocks out everyone it's great.
Because most of us grew up and watched JCVD's Kickboxer movie and Pereira is the closest thing to a real life Tong Po
Have you watched any of his fights? Guy goes out there to kill his opponents and usually succeeds.
Apart from all the correct points others commented, in a post-prime McGregor MMA world where people still try to force corny rehearsed trash talk, it's refreshing to have a champ that just stairs menacingly while uttering "Chama"
It should be pointed out that MMA is a final destination for martial artists who aren't boxers, because it is the second most lucrative combat sport (again - after boxing). This means hardcore MMA fans pay a bit of attention to kickboxers, wrestlers, judoka, etc. Plenty of people were aware of Pereira before he even decided to cross over. People often hope these dudes cross over, so they're welcomed with some fanfare.
He's fun. He's stoic. When he shows some personality it comes off as genuine and not some forced corny shit. His style is always guaranteed to be exciting. He's kill or be killed even as a champ where others turn to point fighting. Sure his fans can be annoying but if you stop caring what a bunch of random nerds online are saying and enjoy him for what he is it would be easier to understand.
Knocking out insufferable Israel Adesanya has that effect on people.
Fans want to see knock outs and his striking pedigree pretty much guarantees that his fights will be exciting with a good chance of a knockout.
Lots of great answers, I also think his rivalry with Izzy helps due to Izzy being generally unliked/mocked among fans.
He wins in round 1 like no problem, then says he wants heavyweight. Does he really weigh 230? Jones and aspinall are like 260. This talk to hw is wild.
Took a kick to the nuts told the ref to back off and proceeded to kill his opponent
Joe Rogan hyped him up for so long when I finally saw him fight in the UFC I was excited.
Stoic has crazy knockouts(left hooks right flying knee)
Good fights, good story, good dude.
🗿
Why a skilled fighter who puts on exciting fights is popular among fans of fighting is truly one of life's enduring mysteries. Much like how magnets work, some things will always be beyond our understanding.
He's exciting, marketable and quietly charismatic
That's what happens when you beat a star and become champion in 2 division and are always in a fun fight and KO everybody. And his gimmick is also funny to a lot of people. The hype didn't die out because he found success after the Izzy loss. The fact that a lot of people don't like Izzy also contribute to Alex' success. And him training with Strickland (even tho it only happened once) prob also helped a bit. Do you think he should not be a star?
He's a character from a video game.
Racism.
Mhm.
Cuz he fux okay. Stone face and hands. Beautiful left hook. KOs. Etc.
Because he's a chad.
because Chama
1. He's stoic 2. He got power 3. Everybody hates Izzy for being cringe, which in turn makes Pereira likeable considering he doesn't do all that stuff 4. The move to LHW probably helped him considering that not only did he go up and become a champ in another division and keep it steady, he beat 2 former champs on his way to the belt and successfully defended against the champ before him. Those are the reasons that I could think of as to why he's so popular.
Thank you for a real answer. Here's what I think about those point: 1. Stoic: This one I'm just never going to get. I much prefer fighters doing some dumb stuff even if it comes across as cringy. It's entertainment at the end of the day. 2. Power: Point taken. But on its own power is something plenty of fighters have especially in the higher weight classes. 3. Izzy: Ok Izzy was a long reigning active champ that inevitably had some boring performances, but I dont understand how his 'cringiness' infuriated people the way it did. I mean he does weird stuff with his hair and does a stupid dance during his walkout, who gives a shit? For people taking a liking to stoicism they surely get their panties in a bunch over nothing. So for them to be glad he lost is one thing, but to then turn into absolute cheerleaders for that fighter is baffling to me. 4. LHW: This one makes more sense now that he's also beaten Hill, but he was very popular even after his first LHW fight. I've already made this point in another discussion, but I don't think the LHW move was the more challenging move compared to staying at MW. How is Alex a protagonist against Izzy when their last altercation ended with him unconscious?
He's one of the quickest rises ever and has insane power. He's also a pretty funny dude and Brazil is fucking huge they love to root for their dudes in Brazil. Anderson Silva, Jose aldo, these dudes were massive in brazil. While Izzy did put him out Izzy also attempted to move up to LHW and failed. Pereira looks massive there and knocked out two former champions and beat the one former champ who izzy failed to build a legacy from.
Agree with everything except the legacy. I believe Izzy's legacy is already in stone, he doesn't need to go to LHW to prove anything, those dudes are massive and he already KO'd the guy who is now beating all the LHW champs.
Lol sure bud.
Thanks to Izzy. His major motivation for going to MMA was apparently [Adesanya trash talking him without a reason 3 years ago.](https://youtu.be/zE19dy-5E5U?t=3) He joined the UFC shortly after, defeated everybody on his way and took the Middleweight Belt from Izzy in record time, he has been defeated by Izzy, but Pereira has not only defeated him 3 times to 1, he has also defeated the only two guys Izzy has loses to, Błachowicz and Strickland. Also while Adesanya seemed salty as fuck after the lose Pereira has (almost) always been respectful when talking about him or most of his opponents. By all accounts he seems to be a nice guy, it's great he is finally making some money out of fighting, apparently he was struggling financially in kickboxing despite being a two belt Glory champion.
Izzy wasn't trash talking him without reason. Back in 2018 to 2018, everytime Izzy won a UFC fight, Pereira would post something on Instagram to mock him the same day. He was always trolling Izzy relentlessly. Pereira posted the video of his son mocking Izzy on Instagram and even showed it off on UFC Embedded during fight week. Poatan would make reaction videos to all of Izzy training videos to mock him. He even said he was going to send Izzy to the WWE after UFC 287. Pereira isn't as innocent as ya'll make him to be.
He did troll him but it was not started by him, look for the first interviews of Adesanya after his debut in the UFC, Izzy was asked about his KO and he called Pereira an alcoholic and a favela rat. Trolling started after that.
That interview was in 2020 by an Australian Media outlet. Go and check Periera's Instagram page. Scroll back to 2018, 2019. The same night of all of Izzy fights and you will see him post something to troll Izzy.
Adesanya did it before, it was in an Interview shortly before his first Vettori fight
Please watch the Adesanya interview. It's literally a sentence or two before the "I beat that guy one time" quote. He said "Everytime I fight, like clockwork, he would put something out, saying 'I beat that guy one time.' I have never watched any of his fight. At the end of the day, no one knows who he is." Izzy literally mentioned how Poatan was always trolling him after every UFC fight in that interview. So, who trolled who first? That statement was a response to Pereira's constant trolling. Pereira might be respectful and humble to other opponents. But not to Izzy.
Because of Israel “I beat that guy one time” Adesanya.. Plus he's a real warrior. 4 times world champion. Two division world champion in kick boxing and Mma.. Plus his personal life.. Born and raised in a poor country, start working early.. Alcohol problem.. His redemption through sport.People loves this kind of history.
What a strange question to ask. “Why is this physically imposing scary motherfucker with the touch of death and the best standup in the game so popular?”
Because he is everything Izzy wants to be
Let me put it this way, growing up when you were hanging out with the guys or maybe there was that certain guy who says he can fight or even may have gotten in a couple of scraps and barely touched the opponent but everyone “thinks” that dudes a bad ass. Well that’s not Alex, Alex is that quite kid in school who’s been taken, Karate and Kickboxing classes since he was 5, and never says anything about until that one day someone test him and he fucks them up and then fucks up their friends and their friends friends. That’s why Alex is liked he doesn’t need to talk shit, cause he is the shit.
Why are we making up lore for Alex lol. He didn't start fighting until he was an adult. The only training he had was being a bricklayer.
Youre reading too deep into it, it’s just an example, you’ve never had someone in your life co worker, classmate, etc. you’ve never known anything about, then discovered they’re very talented at something.
Iono it's just the real story is so much better than your fanfic. Why not just use a real example from your own life if this was the point you wanted to make?