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Top MMA Coach Picks Joaquin Buckley As ‘Fighter Of The Year’ Over Alex Pereira & Ilia Topuria

Coach Eric Nicksick, for one, has been extremely impressed by UFC welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley’s efforts in 2024. Buckley closed out his year in style on Saturday night when he headlined the final event of 2024. Opposite him inside Tampa’s Amalie Arena was former interim champion Colby Covington, who planned on placing his name back […]

Coach Eric Nicksick, for one, has been extremely impressed by UFC welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley’s efforts in 2024.

Buckley closed out his year in style on Saturday night when he headlined the final event of 2024. Opposite him inside Tampa’s Amalie Arena was former interim champion Colby Covington, who planned on placing his name back into title contention a year on from a third failed bid for undisputed status.

“Chaos” didn’t succeed in that ambition, however, with Buckley dominating him in the opening two rounds before a deep cut sustained just above Covington’s right eye proved too bad for him to continue.

With the result, “New Mansa” has gone 4-0 this year, having previously knocked out Vicente Luque, outpointed Nursulton Ruziboev, and stopped Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.

And according to Nicksick, that’s elevated him not only into the “Fighter of the Year” discussion, but above both consensus leading candidates Alex Pereira and Ilia Topuria.

“Real talk, @Newmansa94 (Buckley) resurrection needs to be studied,” Nicksick wrote on X. “6-0 in a new division w/ 4 stoppages, 4-0 in 2024. Ladies and Gentlemen, he’s your 2024 Fighter of the Year. I’m out”

Pereira, the reigning light heavyweight kingpin, has staked his claim with three title defenses in 2024. After knockouts of Jamahal Hill and Ji?í Procházka, “Poatan” most recently came from behind to batter Khalil Rountree in round four of their headline battle this past October.

Topuria, meanwhile, seemingly has the edge over the Brazilian in terms of competition level. Though he’s fought once less than Pereira, the Spaniard dethroned the highly regarded Alexander Volkanovski in brutal fashion before becoming the first man to knock out Max Holloway to retain the featherweight gold.

But taking into account his career revival since dropping to 170 pounds, Buckley appears to have the vote of one renowned trainer in the fight game.

Read More: Dana White On Colby Covington’s Defeat To Joaquin Buckley: ‘That Fight Doesn’t Get Stopped In Vegas’

Watch: Alex Pereira Dances with K-Pop Group tripleS

Watch: Alex Pereira Dances with K Pop Group tripleS In a surprising crossover moment, UFC champion Alex Pereira was spotted dancing with South Korean girl group tripleS, blending…

In a surprising crossover moment, UFC champion Alex Pereira was spotted dancing with South Korean girl group tripleS, blending the worlds of combat sports and K-pop. tripleS, a 24-member group under MODHAUS.

Alex Pereira Dances with K-Pop Group tripleS

tripleS has made waves in the K-pop scene with its decentralized structure. Launched in 2023, the group allows fans to vote on everything from song selections to sub-unit formations through their app, Cosmos. This model has fascinated global fans, propelling tripleS to international attention.

In December 2024, Pereira, who is a two-division UFC champion, was seen joining the group in a fun, unexpected dance collaboration. Known for his striking power and impressive MMA career, Pereira’s participation in the dance came as a surprise to many fans of both the UFC and K-pop.

The full 24-member debut of tripleS occurred in May 2024 with their album ASSEMBLE24, marking a milestone in their journey. The K-pop group’s unique concept continues to set them apart from others in the industry, with their fan-driven approach. tripleS has quickly become one of the most talked-about K-pop groups, as evidenced by their Best New Female Artist win at the 2023 MAMA Awards. As of October 2024, tripleS had sold a total of 718,241 copies in South Korea across all their releases.

Alex Pereira, who is currently the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and a former Middleweight Champion, has proven that his versatility extends beyond the octagon.

gettyimages 2177025982 612x612 1 — SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – OCTOBER 05: Alex Pereira of Brazil reacts after his TKO victory against Khalil Rountree Jr. in the UFC light heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 307 event at Delta Center on October 05, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

Alex Pereira Gives 4-Word Reaction To Jamahal Hill Altercation

December 5 was a busy day for the UFC’s light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in the fight capital of the world. “Poatan” was in attendance for the 16th annual World MMA Awards where he picked up the Fighter of the Year Award for the four wins that he achieved in the space of one calendar […]

Before the ceremony got underway, a training session of his at the UFC Performance Institute nearly ended in him and his former opponent, Jamahal Hill, coming to blows. A video of the interaction was posted by Full Send MMA, showing Hill walking over to Pereira and his coach, Plinio Cruz.

After the two men start talking, the Brazilian throws a pair of gloves towards Hill, seemingly beckoning him to engage in a rematch of their meeting at UFC 300 in April which Pereira won via a knockout in the first round. With Cruz doing his best to diffuse the situation, the two men never actually touch each other but it was clear from the video that the 205-pound champion wasn’t going to back down.

“Poatan” and “Sweet Dreams” have had a rocky relationship both before and after their main event clash in Las Vegas. The way that Hill acted on fight week clearly bothered the current titleholder as after stopping the former champion, he taunted him with an instantly iconic post-fight celebration.

Hill’s complaints about referee Herb Dean’s calls in that fight have only prolonged the feud between them and with him returning at UFC 311 to face Ji?í Procházka in Los Angeles, we may see the two men meet again inside the Octagon in the near future.

Pereira himself posted the video of their exchange on X, adding a four-word caption which when translated from Portuguese to English, comes out as “the atmosphere became tense”.

VIDEO: Alex Pereira & Jamahal Hill Get Into Heated Confrontation At UFC PI

The animosity between former UFC opponents Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill threatened to boil over this week. Pereira, the reigning light heavyweight champion, and former titleholder Hill met inside the cage at UFC 300 this past April, headlining the pay-per-view with “Poatan’s” gold on the line. The American’s plan to regain the belt was quickly […]

The animosity between former UFC opponents Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill threatened to boil over this week.

Pereira, the reigning light heavyweight champion, and former titleholder Hill met inside the cage at UFC 300 this past April, headlining the pay-per-view with “Poatan’s” gold on the line. The American’s plan to regain the belt was quickly foiled when he fell victim to the Brazilian’s renowned left hook inside the very first round.

Since then, “Sweet Dreams” has attracted plenty of criticism from the MMA community for his reaction to defeat. Hill has continuously blamed Herb Dean’s brief intervention after Pereira was struck low, despite subsequently touching gloves with the champ to resume the fight and throwing a strike at the same time as the shot that floored him.

Those remarks have been joined by claims that Pereira ‘fears’ running it back with the #3-ranked contender. Unsurprisingly, “Poatan” didn’t look scared when Hill confronted him at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas on Thursday.

A video released by Full Send MMA shows Hill approaching his ex-opponent before stating, “Not on Twitter now,” as Pereira went for a respectful fist bump.

At that point, “Poatan” switched his attitude toward “Sweet Dreams,” throwing a pair of gloves and inviting him to spar. Hill did not take up the offer.

Before the possibility of the pair sharing the Octagon once again becomes a reality, they’ll both seemingly have other work to do in the new year.

For Hill, a fight date is officially in the calendar. He’ll meet a fellow former champ in Ji?í Procházka at the first PPV of 2025, UFC 311 at Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome on Jan. 19.

Pereira, meanwhile, is without a date for his fourth title defense. He is, however, expected to next face the challenge of Magomed Ankalaev.

Read More: Jamahal Hill Responds To Fans Being ‘Weird’ About Jon Jones Calling Him Out

Video: Alex Pereira Tries to Fight Jamahal Hill at UFC Gym amid Social Media Beef

UFC fighters Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill confronted each other at the UFC Performance Institute and appeared ready to fight before being separated. Pereira…

‘Poatan’ Pays It Forward — UFC Champ’s Heartwarming Gift to His Family

Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira has had an absolutely incredible run since making his UFC debut. It’s crazy to think that…

Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira has had an absolutely incredible run since making his UFC debut.

It’s crazy to think that just four years ago, ‘Poatan’ was a relatively unknown prospect in the MMA game. Today, he is a two-division world champion and is well on his way to becoming one of the best P4P fighters the sport has ever seen. With his immense success has come stacks of cash and the opportunity to pay it forward.

Taking to X, the reigning light heavyweight titleholder revealed that he had purchased a lavish home for his parents and offered a look at where they were in 2021 compared to where they are today.

“Photo 1, four years ago having lunch at my parents house,” Pereira wrote in the post.

“Photo 2, their home today. Thank you very much my God,” the UFC champion added, showing off the impressive mansion he purchased for his family.

‘Poatan’ flexes his cash flow while sitting in a Ferrari

Days before, Pereira posted a picture of himself sporting a gold bracelet and thousands of dollars in cash while sitting in a yellow Ferrari and reminiscing about the times when he couldn’t afford simple necessities, like diapers for his children.

“I remember when my sons were on their last pair of diapers and I didn’t have money to buy new ones,” Pereira wrote.

Pereira found success under the GLORY Kickboxing banner, becoming a two-division champion with the promotion and landing an absolutely brutal knockout against Israel Adesanya before they both made the move to MMA.

Since his Octagon debut, ‘Poatan’ has amassed an impressive 9-1 record and won both the middleweight and light heavyweight titles — the latter of which he still holds. Along the way, he’s scored wins over a slew of former world champions like Sean Strickland, the aforementioned Adesanya, Jan Blachowicz, Jiri Prochazka, and Jamahal Hill.

Pereira’s most recent outing saw him land a fourth-round TKO against Khalil Rountree at UFC 307 in Salt Lake City.