Michel Pereira Re-Signed With the UFC Just to Fight Shara Magomedov at UFC Baku
Michel Pereira re-signed with the UFC specifically to fight Shara Magomedov at UFC Baku on June 27th. Two of the flashiest knockout artists in the sport finally meet in Azerbaijan.
Michel Pereira left the UFC but now he's back, and the only reason he came back was to fight Shara "Bullet" Magomedov.
The two middleweight knockout artists headline UFC Baku on June 27 at the National Gymnastics Arena in Azerbaijan. Pereira re-signed with the UFC in March specifically to get this fight. Two of the flashiest knockout artists in the sport finally meet in Azerbaijan.
UFC Baku Delivers Fight Fans Have Been Asking For
This fight has been anticipated for some time now. After Shara Magomedov knocked out Armen Petrosyan with one of the craziest finishes in UFC history at UFC 308, fans began demanding that this fight be official. This honestly does look like it would be the most exciting fight the middeweight division can offer, with two insane and entertaining fighters who refuse to have a boring fight.
Both of them built their names off viral knockouts and highlight reel moments. They're the two fighters casual fans will stop scrolling for, the kind of guys where you see their name on a card and you know you're watching that fight no matter what else is on.
That's why this matchup kept coming up in every comment section and every MMA podcast for months. Everybody could see it was the fight to make.
It took about a full year but here we finally are, and these two are scheduled to fight next week in Baku.
Two Fighters Who Don't Know How to Be Boring Square Off in UFC Baku
Pereira is the guy who does backflips off the cage, throws flying knees from angles that shouldn't be possible, and once celebrated a win by doing a full gymnastics routine in the Octagon. He moved up from welterweight to middleweight and rattled off three straight first round finishes with performance bonuses before running into Anthony Hernandez.
Shara Magomedov is different but equally crazy. That spinning backfist knockout over Petrosyan went viral worldwide. He called out Israel Adesanya after that win cause he genuinely believed he was ready for the former champion.
Magomedov's striking is unorthodox, unpredictable, and he throws with bad intentions every time his hands leave his hips. Joe Pyfer submitted him at UFC 320 and showed there are holes in his game that the right fighter can exploit.
Shara Magomedov Has Been Gone for Over a Year
One thing that's overlooked is that Shara Magomedov has not competed since October 2025. That’s eight months by the time he enters the cage in Baku.
His last fight was the Pyfer loss at UFC 320, where he was submitted for the first time since 2013. Prior to that he was on a roll with knockouts of Petrosyan and Brunno Ferreira.
The question is whether the Pyfer loss and the long layoff changed anything. Magomedov was 3-0 and looking unstoppable before that fight. One submission loss doesn't erase the talent, but it does raise questions about how he handles adversity.
Michel Pereira Wants This More Than Anything
Fighters leave the UFC all the time. Contracts expire and they move on, but coming back to the UFC specifically to fight one guy? That's personal. Pereira didn't re-sign cause the money was better or cause he missed the Octagon. He re-signed cause he wants Shara.
UFC Baku on June 27 features two guys who fight like they have nothing to lose and everything to prove. Neither one of them are capable of putting on a boring performance even if they tried.
