Michel Pereira Scores Win; Calls Out Jorge Masvidal At UFC On ESPN+ 34

Michel Pereira earned himself a UFC contract with a mix of showmanship, athleticism and skill. He knocked out Danny Roberts in the first round of his UFC debut. He then lost his next two bouts. During those losing efforts, Pereira seemed more focused on showmanship than on fighting. That changed last night when he scored an impressive win over Zelim Imadaev at UFC Vegas 9.

With no live crowd to entertain at the UFC Apex, Pereira focused on his fighting and athleticism. Yes, he pulled out some of his over the top striking techniques and he did attempt to show off at points, but he seemed to focus much more on actually winning this fight. That approach paid off as Pereira showed that he truly is a talented fighter and not a clown.

Pereira had the fight in hand by the mid-point of the third round. All he had to do was avoid getting knocked out or submitted and he would have walked away with the decision win. Instead of playing it safe, Pereira kept up the pressure and then, with under a minute left in the fight, perhaps intending to show that he still had cardio and power left in the tank, he scored a belly to back suplex and went for a rear-naked choke submission. With 21-seconds left in the bout, referee Chris Tognoni waved off the fight.

The victory was an impressive one. After the win, which earned the 27-year-old Brazilian a “Performance of the Night” bonus award, Pereira offered up a suggested opponent for his next outing.

“I want to fight the best,” Pereira said at the UFC on ESPN+ 34 post-fight press conference. “I train very hard to do that and I train with some of the best. I want to fight the best and Jorge Masvidal is one of them. He’s a guy that I want to fight against. I think people would find it to be a great fight, a big fight, and it would give a show to all the UFC fans and the world.”

The UFC is trying to book a Jorge Masvidal vs. Nate Diaz rematch for January. The first fight between the two ended with Masvidal winning via doctor stoppage TKO. With the victory over Diaz, Masvidal claimed the BMF title.

UFC on ESPN+ 34 took place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. ESPN+ streamed the entire event.