Alex Pereira has admitted that Jiri Procházka has the power to take him down. However, Poatan shared that there’s a team behind him that taught him to comprehend the style of Denisa.
The Pereira-Procházka has been exciting MMA fans this past few weeks, and the wait will end soon when the two meet in the cage at UFC 295. Pereira, despite several people supporting his side, believes this won’t be an easy fight, admitting that his opponent defeats rivals through surprises. Yet, Pereira believes he’s prepared for it through the help of his team.
“It’s going to be a war,” he said. “Everybody knows my history and Procházka’s history. He’s an aggressive and unpredictable guy, you don’t know where the strikes are coming. [I have to] stay alert, be smart. I’m not training only with one-dimensional guys, I’m training with several people that helped me understand his game, and I think it matches up really well for me.”
Alongside this, Poatan seems to be considering the possibility of winning the bout through submission. Despite being successful in his career, this is one of the things the Brazilian professional mixed martial artist has been aiming to bring to his record in the field.
“If I’m in a great position where I feel comfortable, I’ll sure risk it and believe in a submission. You can be sure of that,” Pereira said. “Every time I fight, I want to come out with the victory. I don’t know how it’s going to be, but I’ll be ready, I’ll be prepared. I want to go five rounds and leave no doubts, but anything can happen. I have no prediction, but anything can happen.”
In relation to that, the former main coach of Georges St-Pierre, Firas Zahabi, believes that Pereira has an advantage over Procházka due to his Muay Thai skills. Zahabi said this could allow Poatan to win.
“I’m picking Pereira. My old Muay Thai trainer used to tell me: ‘Muay Thai always wins,'” Zahabi said in the gym’s recent YouTube video. “I think Pereira’s going to win the striking battle, too tenacious, he’s going to land the low kicks… Everybody he’s thought is pretty much a striker…yes, he out-wrestled Adesanya, but I think it was more of Adesanya being overwhelmed with the striking.”
