Fight fans rarely see the jovial side of UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira, but the Brazilian knockout artist actually cracked a smile earlier this week courtesy of long-time training partner and former UFC light heavyweight champion, Glover Teixeira.
Pereira, who made his UFC debut less than two years ago, in entering his first official middleweight title defense tomorrow night (Sat., April 8, 2023) at UFC 287 live on ESPN+ PPV from inside Miami-Dade Arena in Miami, Florida. “Poaton” will meet former titleholder Israel Adesanya in a rematch for the undisputed 185-pound crown.
As usual, Pereira is all business entering his fifth appearance inside of the Octagon. The former two-division GLORY champion is known for his stone cold demeanor ahead of fights, but Pereira has been a little extra-dialed in this week ahead of his grudge match with “Last Stylebender.”
Luckily, Teixeira has been by Pereira’s side trying to lighten the mood along the way. Teixeira has been friends and training partners with “Poaton” for quite some time and has watched his UFC rise firsthand. During a recent makeup session backstage, Teixeira surprised Pereira by taking over artistic duties and doing a little brush work.
Check it out below courtesy of UFC:
You can count Pereira’s fight week smiles on one hand so be thankful this one was caught on camera. The reigning UFC middleweight champion will look to keep his focus this weekend in Miami and he tries to put an end to his rivalry with Adesanya and prove he’s a champion that can last at 185 pounds.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 287 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC 287: “Pereira vs. Adesanya 2” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 287 fight card and PPV lineup click here.