Alex Pereira has teased a move to heavyweight for a couple of years now, and is doing so again with 2026 just around the corner.
Will the new year finally be the one where Pereira (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) makes the leap to the land of the giants? At least one analyst thinks so, with Din Thomas predicting “Poatan” will finally make the leap.
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“Alex Pereira has had this unique and special career,” Thomas told MMA Junkie. “Sometimes if you’re not built for championship-level fighting, just be a hell of a prize fighter. Make all the money you can. Alex Pereira has had this unique ability to do both simultaneously. Be a prize fighter, make all the money and also be a championship-level fighter. Not everybody can do that.
“Him fluctuating between weight classes makes sense for him. I think the older her gets the less he’s going to want to cut weight. I think he’s going to be a heavyweight by the end of the year.”
Pereira, No. 4 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie light heavyweight rankings, is currently the UFC’s 205-pound champion after regaining the strap from Magomed Ankalaev with a first-round TKO in their rematch at UFC 320 in October. The Brazilian has been angling for a heavyweight showdown against Jon Jones, who has returned interest.
The Jones fight could be one way to introduce Pereira to heavyweight, but there are other avenues, as well. He could potentially challenge the winner of Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane 2 for the heavyweight title, or take another proven contender like Alexander Volkov, Derrick Lewis or others.
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For Thomas, the opponent isn’t the most significant part of the equation. He sees Pereira as the A-side in almost all scenarios, and merely the scene of Pereira moving up to his third UFC weight class would be a can’t-miss attraction.
“You could put Alex Pereira against anybody and it’s must-see TV,” Thomas said. “You’ve got to watch it. He has that ability now. Before UFC 300 you couldn’t have said that about him. But after UFC 300, then UFC 303, then UFC 307, he became this star where it really didn’t matter the opponent.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC analyst predicts Alex Pereira moves to heavyweight in 2026
