The drama around UFC 334 is already boiling over, and it’s not even fight night yet. Former two-division champion Alex Pereira is straight up questioning the main event placement for the upcoming card, and he’s not holding back on social media. The criticism hit Instagram Stories, aimed squarely at the heavyweight championship fight headlining the night at Madison Square Garden.
Why the Co-Main Has Pereira Fuming
The core of Pereira’s frustration? For the second time, the women’s bantamweight title super fight between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes is relegated to the co-main event spot. This is a massive fight, folks, and for it to be bumped in favor of a different title bout has caused outrage before. This time, the heavyweight championship clash between Ciryl Gane and Josh Hokit is set to headline the No. 14 card in New York, and Pereira thinks it’s completely undeserving of the top spot. He straight up called out the matchup on Instagram, stating it was “unworthy” to be billed over Harrison (19-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) vs. Nunes (23-5 MMA, 16-2 UFC). “Why the Women’s Fight is Not the Main Event?” Pereira wrote. He even added, “Okay let me help promote this cause not one is payin attention to it…” Talk about throwing shade.
Sour Grapes or Fair Point? Hokit Fires Back
Now, Pereira’s personal connection to this is definitely worth noting. He (13-4 MMA, 10-3 UFC) suffered a second-round TKO loss to Ciryl Gane (14-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) back in June. Plus, he was initially campaigning for a title shot himself in “The Big Apple,” but the UFC opted to go with Hokit as the challenger instead. So yeah, you could definitely see Pereira’s post as a bit of sour grapes. But here’s where it gets wild: Josh Hokit wasn’t about to let that slide. The challenger chimed in on X (formerly Twitter) with a response that went nuclear. “My name Dum Dum. You bring me Gum Gum?” lol,” Hokit wrote, and then kept going. “I didn’t realize that losing your aura, affected your IQ. You aren’t even BMF worthy. They prefer a little crotch sniffer over a Auraless Sorceress. Hopefully Sergei doesn’t end you like he did your brazillian punching bag, teammate.” Yikes. That’s a direct hit, calling out Pereira’s recent loss and his upcoming opponent.
This beef is heating up before UFC 334 even gets here, and it makes Pereira’s next move even more critical. He’s currently booked to face Sergei Pavlovich in the UFC 335 co-main event on December 12 in Las Vegas. That fight just got a whole lot more interesting now that Hokit has basically put a target on Pereira’s back.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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