In an interview with Ushatayka, Ankalaev’s coach Sukhrab Magomedov accused Pereira of being sticky and having ointment on his body to help him defend takedowns. He even claimed that Pereira’s mentor Glover Teixeira was known to grease.

Pereira, 37, became the subject of whispers this past week when UFC commentator Joe Rogan claimed on his podcast that Pereira came into the Ankalaev fight with a broken hand and norovirus. There's at least some truth to those rumors, as Pereira confirmed he dealt with injuries, but he declined to go into detail.

In light of his recent loss at UFC 313, Alex Pereira has suggested changing the Unified Rules of MMA to eliminate certain gameplans. 'Poatan' was defeated by Magomed Ankalaev in a tight decision. What tipped the fight in Ankalaev's favor was over a round of control time,