Alex Pereira's UFC 335 Fight Could Be His Last

It was announced over the weekend that Alex Pereira would be returning at UFC 335 in a five-round co-main event against Russian slogger Sergei Pavlovich.

The former two-weight world champion lost last time out to heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane on The White House Lawn, and many wondered whether he would return to 205lbs. It's not to be, however, and we will once again see him make the walk at heavyweight in pursuit of a belt in a third weight class.

Pavlovich is no easy fight. Enjoying a three-fight winning run, the Russian has legitimate one-punch knockout power, a wealth of experience, and is fresh, coming off a 0:39 knockout last time out.

Alex Pereira's Last Fight?

It's undeniable that Alex Pereira's heavyweight debut didn't go to plan. He didn't look good; his punches didn't appear to have the same effect on Gane when the two men fought, and when the Frenchman landed on the Brazilian, it had a big impact.

At middleweight, when he touched opponents, they were almost always separated from consciousness. His lone middleweight loss came at the hands of Israel Adesanya, and many believed that a big factor was that Pereira was draining his body of too much water, leading to him being more vulnerable.

At light heavyweight, we didn't see him truly challenged at any point from a durability point of view. Although he would lose to Magomed Ankalaev, the Russian did very little damage to the then champion.

At heavyweight, it was a different story.

Bad Timing

This fight may have come at the wrong time for Alex Pereira. Pavlovich is in form, fresh and ready to go. Pereira is coming off a TKO loss in June.

On top of that, he's recently turned 39, and the older a fighter becomes, the slower they get. With the added weight on his frame, Pereira isn't going to be lightning fast and at 39, he won't be getting any faster.

When we saw Pavlovich truly hurt against Tom Aspinall, it was due to the Brit's speed. Pereira won't possess that speed in Las Vegas.

Where does he go with a loss?

A loss for Alex Pereira would more than likely end his UFC career. He'd be 0-2 at heavyweight and a long way away from a title shot. He's too big a name to fight budding contenders and too old to have a 2-3 fight re-build.

Would he drop back down to light heavyweight? It's very unlikely. Although that's a division that he's had his biggest successes, it's unlikely that he would want to make the weight again. He weighed in at 251lbs last time out and will likely come in to UFC 335 in and around that weight again. To drop 45lbs is a huge ask, especially at 39.

Whatever he chooses to do, he only has a handful of fights left in the UFC... and a loss at UFC 335 could see that end come prematurley.