Sergei Pavlovich Puts Josh Hokit Fight Talk on Hold Until After UFC 334
Sergei Pavlovich wants Josh Hokit to first defeat Ciryl Gane and capture the heavyweight title before they discuss a potential fight.
The Russian will face Alex Pereira in the co-main event of UFC 335 on December 12 in Las Vegas. Before that, "The incredible Hok" challenges Gane for the undisputed heavyweight title, headlining the UFC 334 main event tonight at Madison Square Garden in New York.
The feud between the two started in June. Pavlovich had just knocked out Tallison Teixeira in 39 seconds at UFC Macau, while Hokit was gearing up to face Derrick Lewis at UFC Freedom 250. Pavlovich told Hokit on X to take care of Lewis first and then offered to fight him in China in August.
Thereafter, "The Incredible Hok” fired back on X, writing, “F*** China and f*** you! USA MFER!” He then stopped Lewis in the second round at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14.
Sergei Pavlovich Says Josh Hokit Kept Bringing Up His Name
After that fight, Hokit kept bringing up Pavlovich's name. In September, the 29-year-old suggested that Alex Pereira should fight Pavlovich instead of chasing Ciryl Gane, calling the Russian “basically a striker & way less athletic than Ciryl.”
A month later, he warned "Poatan" that Pavlovich could finish him at UFC 335. Now, Pavlovich does not know why Hokit stopped bringing up his name. Ahead of the UFC 334 press conference, the 34-year-old said he told Hokit to get past his next opponent before talking about him. He said:
“He kept on talking my name. I told him, bro, you gotta fight in front of you. If you win, then we can talk. I don’t know what happened. Maybe eventually we’ll get a fight.”
Sergei Pavlovich Needs to Beat Alex Pereira to Stay in the Title Race
A win over Pereira could put Pavlovich back in the title picture. So far, the 21-3 heavyweight is on a three-fight win streak, with decision wins over Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Waldo Cortes-Acosta and, most recently, a first-round knockout of Tallison Teixeira at UFC Macau in May. Pavlovich last fought for the title at UFC 295, where he lost to Tom Aspinall by first-round knockout.
Conversely, Pereira is also coming off a loss. He vacated his light heavyweight title to move up, but Gane knocked him out in round two at UFC Freedom 250.
Furthermore, the No. 2-ranked heavyweight, Alexander Volkov, is also in the title mix. He beat Pavlovich by unanimous decision in June 2024 and is now on a three-fight win streak.
If Hokit dethrones "Bon Gamin" tonight, a win over Pereira would put Pavlovich in line for the fight that he's been talking about since June.
