After his performance and a recent win over Israel Adesanya at UFC 281, Alex Pereira is being deemed one of the scariest fighters in UFC. The UFC middleweight champion has taken the world by storm ever since making his debut in 2021. He has a professional MMA record of 7-1 and six out of his seven wins in his MMA career have come by knockout. With his striking ability and vicious power behind his fists, he is also known as Poatan. But what does this nickname mean.
Before his move to MMA Alex was a renowned kickboxer, considered by some the greatest kickboxer to live. The Brazilian has an impressive record of 33 wins out of which 21 were by knockout. He was also a multi-division champion during his time at Glory Kickboxing. Alex Pereira has an indigenous ancestry from the Pataxó tribe in Brazil. His name is derived from his native ‘ Tupi ‘ language. Surprisingly Poatan is not a single word but rather two different ones. ‘Po ‘ in his native language means hand. Whereas ‘Atan ‘ mean something solid or stone-like. So when these two words come together they form ‘Poatan‘ which can be translated to ‘Stone Hand’.
Alex Pereira has a tattoo of pebbles and rocks on his left hand to symbolise his nickname. Over the course of his career, Alex Pereira is known for the destructive power in his hands. The more he knocks people out in the octagon, the more truthful he remains to his name.
Alex Pereira remains the only fighter to knock out Israel Adesanya twice and has a total of 3 wins over him. With his past wins and accolades, he is once again set to end his rivalry with Israel Adesanya for the last time at UFC 287.
Related: Is Alex Pereira Muslim? What religion does the Brazilian middleweight follow?
Alex Pereira and his indigenous roots
UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira has taken the world by storm after defeating Israel Adesanya. Prior to his career in MMA , Poatan had a legendary run in the Kickboxing world. He is one of the best kickboxers and after his win at UFC 281, he’s become one of the scariest fighters on the UFC roster. Pereira’s practice and dedication to this sport are obviously part of the reason for his success. However, the fighter also believes his roots play a major part and embraces them proudly.
Alex Pereira hails from the Pataxó tribe from Bahi, Brazil. The native tribe has a population of around 12,000 people. They once spoke the Pataxó language, but now speak Portuguese and a revitalized version of the Pataxó language called Patxohã. Pereira’s now famous bow and arrow walkout ritual have a native connection as well. This signature entrance is his method to pay homage to his culture and family, as it makes him look more intimidating and more confident.
Pereira constantly draws strength and inspiration from his roots and it helps them in all his fights. On his YouTube channel, Alex posts videos of him visiting his tribe and taking his championship title to the tribe. Alex never fails to make his native people proud. The more he embraces his roots the more closer he feels to them.
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