Alex Pereira has emerged as the UFC’s biggest superstar, attracting a number of opponents desperate to dethrone him. Every top light heavyweight in the UFC is after the Brazilian, aiming for his belt. However, his opponents aren’t restricted to the UFC. Former kickboxing adversary Artem Vakhitov is now looking to reignite their rivalry, focussing on Pereira again.
Vakhitov has finally taken the first step toward the rivalry with his recent victory in Dana White’s Contender Series. The former Glory Kickboxing champion defeated his opponent via TKO and got the UFC contract with some assistance from Pereira. Surprisingly, ‘Poatan’ was also present in the audience to spectate his old nemesis. After the fight, both fighters met and hugged each other and showed immense respect.
I’m very happy to see you winning…So, just keep doing, keep winning. I will be watching this. I will be focused on myself and hopefully…It will happen so that we will meet each other again
Artem Vakhitov via Instagram
Previously, Artem Vakhitov was particularly loud with his claims to beat Pereira. The Russian blamed UFC fighters for not pushing Pereira enough, something he has done in the past. Vakhitov claimed that he would exploit Pereira’s lack of defense, which resulted in a back-and-forth between both fighters.
However, it seems like all that was casual trash-talking. In reality, there is a huge respect between both fighters. Pereira also wished Vakhitov good luck for his UFC journey. Pereira and Vakhitov are 1-1 in Glory Kickboxing, and it seems like Vakhitov is eager for the trilogy fight.
Artem Vakhitov compares his story to Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya’s rivalry
Almost three years back when Alex Pereira made his UFC debut, he was in the same position as Artem Vakhitov. He was chasing Israel Adesanya from kickboxing and managed to make his mark by defeating Izzy. Though Adesanya got his revenge, Pereira has since found way more success with his light heavyweight move.
Pereira has dominated all the top light heavyweights and is looking impossible to beat. Artem Vakhitov believes his story is the same and will replicate what Pereira did to Adesanya by stopping ‘Poatan.’ The Russian fighter is well aware of the challenges and is ready to face them head-on.
This is the way he got into UFC as well. He had a story once he was crossing over. He was the guy who beat Adesanya a couple of times in kickboxing…and he was the only one to defeat Adesanya [in MMA]… Possibly something like that with me and him…I could be the person to defeat him.
Artem Vakhitov via DWCS Presser
Although the story appears promising, Alex Pereira disapproved and quickly refuted the claims. The Brazilian superstar believes that he and Adesanya are on a different level than Vakhitov. All of these queries, however, will soon have an answer if Vakhitov advances through the ranks.
