Sergei Pavlovich says he has “many surprises” in store for Alex Pereira at UFC 335, according to MMA Sucka. That’s the whole tease, and it’s about as much as any heavyweight hands out two months before fight night.
The two meet Dec. 12 on the UFC 335 card topped by Oliveira vs. Lopes. Pavlovich sits at No. 8 in the Knockout Daily heavyweight rankings with a 21-3 record out of Eagles MMA. He last fought May 30. Pereira is No. 6 at heavyweight, 13-4 with Teixeira MMA & Fitness, and last competed June 14.
Pavlovich’s UFC résumé is mostly short nights. After getting stopped by Alistair Overeem in the first round of his 2018 debut, he knocked out Marcelo Golm and then took out Maurice Greene, Shamil Abdurakhimov, Derrick Lewis, Tai Tuivasa and Curtis Blaydes, all in Round 1. The Lewis stoppage came in under a minute and drew criticism as premature. Tuivasa didn’t last a minute either.
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Then came Tom Aspinall at UFC 295 in November 2023, with an interim belt on the line. Pavlovich ate a counter right hand and went out in the first round. Losing a fight that big hurts. Losing it for an interim strap is an extra indignity.
The physical edge is real. Pavlovich carries an 84-inch reach, which gives him five inches on Pereira, @DovySimuMMA noted on X. He’s also believed to have the largest ape index of any active UFC fighter at 1.115.
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Pereira doesn’t need an introduction, but he gets one anyway. He’s a former UFC middleweight champion and two-time light heavyweight champion, the ninth fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two divisions, and a former Glory champion at middleweight and light heavyweight. The UFC had him No. 10 pound-for-pound as of Sept. 22.
His fight week content has been on brand. Clips circulated of him leg kicking a fan at what Dovy called “20% power” and launching a guy who tried holding pads for him. It’s been a rougher week for the family: his sister, Aline Pereira, dropped a 29-28 decision on all three cards to Smilla Sundell on the Contender Series, Championship Rounds reported.
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Pavlovich hasn’t said what the surprises are. Given that five of his UFC wins ended in Round 1, Pereira will spend the next eight weeks wondering whether the surprise is anything other than a right hand.
