Plinio Cruz, the man in Alex Pereira’s corner, took a turn inside the ropes and won. “Alex Pereira’s coach, Plinio Cruz, just got a 2nd round TKO in his Misfits Boxing debut 👀” Championship Rounds wrote on X on Saturday, October 10.
Spinnin Backfist posted footage of the finish on X, which it credited to Misfits Boxing, and called it a KO. Either way, the referee didn’t need a scorecard.
Cruz didn’t save the edge for fight night. Happy Punch posted a clip on X of him going at Chase DeMoor with Pereira watching and clearly enjoying it. “You’re a pssy. Nothing but an insecure little bitch. I’m gonna whoop your fcking ass,” Cruz said in the clip. The sources don’t say DeMoor was the man Cruz beat, so don’t connect those dots yet.
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The fan reaction went straight to matchmaking. Sportskeeda’s roundup of the reaction carried the line “Plinio vs. Gable, Book it Dana” in its headline, a nod to the calls for Cruz to face Gable Steveson. Nothing in the sources suggests anyone with a checkbook is listening. That said, I’ve seen dumber fights get made on less.
Why the coach matters
Cruz’s name carries weight because of who he trains. Pereira is a former two-time UFC light heavyweight champion and a former UFC middleweight champion, the first fighter to hold both of those belts. He also won Glory titles at middleweight and light heavyweight in kickboxing.
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These days Pereira competes at heavyweight, where Knockout Daily’s rankings have him at No. 6 with a 13-4 record. He trains out of Teixeira MMA & Fitness and last fought on June 14.
He’s been talkative this week, too. Championship Rounds posted a clip of Pereira questioning why Ciryl Gane vs. Josh Hokit is headlining UFC 334 over the women’s bout. “Okay let me help promote this cause no one is paying attention to it,” Pereira said.
So the Brazilian camp is getting attention from two directions at once, and the coach just added a stoppage of his own to the highlight reel.
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Whatever Cruz does next in boxing, his day job has a date on it. Pereira faces Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335 on December 12, and Cruz will be back in the corner with the stool and the bucket.
