Ciryl Gane is leaving no stone unturned for Alex Pereira.
This Sunday, Gane and Pereira face off for the interim UFC heavyweight title in the co-main event of UFC White House. And in preparation for the fight, Gane enlisted the help of Pereira’s kickboxing rival, Artem Vakhitov, to help get ready.
Vakhitov fought Pereira for the Glory kickboxing light heavyweight title twice, losing a split decision in their first encounter, before winning a majority decision in the rematch. That fight was the last of Pereira’s kickboxing career, and he believes he knows the recipe to make Pereira have a bad night.
“Everyone’s scared, but you don’t need to be scared. Just pressure him first,” Vakhitov said on UFC Countdown.
“What makes Alex Pereira dangerous is his stone hands. He has knocked out many people in kickboxing and MMA. Minimal technique, but very effective strikes that land. His weakness is his openness. He has a very strong attack, but his defense suffers. Many opponents lose mentally in the fight because they enter already afraid of him. That should not be done. You need to take initiative yourself. Go forward and be aggressive. Then he starts to get lost.”
Pereira is one of the premier knockout artists in MMA, using that skillset to win titles at middleweight and light heavyweight. But he has also had some of his most difficult fights with opposing kickboxers, like Gane. Plus, Vakhitov notes, Pereira is moving up in weight yet again, giving “Bon Gamin” a big edge.
“Adesanya, a classic kickboxer, he exposed the weakness and landed the shot,” Vakhitov said. “Ciryl is also a kickboxer. He has very good movement, speed, timing, and feel. It will be a very interesting fight.
“We’ve seen that Alex has gained weight. I don’t think that will work in his favor because Ciryl feels comfortable at this weight. The fight will end early. Ciryl will finish the job and take the title.”
Pereira, meanwhile, isn’t concerned with Vakhitov helping Gane. The former two-division UFC champion responded to the revelation that Gane had his former rival helping him, noting that a lot has changed over the five years since they last fought.
“Ciryl’s training with Vakhitov? It doesn’t make a difference,” Pereira said. “Kickboxing and MMA are different sports. And I’m not the same fighter I was when I fought Vakhitov. I’ve evolved a lot. Maybe he thinks the guy can give him some useful information, but he’s the one who’s going to be in there with me.
“If Artem Vakhitov is an honest guy, the most important thing he’ll say is, ‘Be careful with this guy. He’s f*cking tough.’”
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White House Mailbag! Get your questions in!
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Well, we did it. It’s been a long road, but UFC White House fight week is upon us. Six more sleeps and the biggest card of the year, perhaps the biggest card ever, will be here. Enjoy it.
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