Alex Perez is back however, if you would ask him he would tell you that he has never left.
Alex Perez Is Back With A Bang at UFC Vegas 91
Last Saturday evening, Alex Perez was able to get the victory over Matheus Nicolau in the Main Event of UFC Vegas 91. Alex Perez was able to get the victory due to a knockout in the 2nd round. This victory was one of the best performances of his career. This victory has come at the best time possible since Alex Perez was coming into this fight off the back of 3 defeats in a row. During the post-fight press conference, Alex Perez confirmed this performance was just an example of what he was saying all along. Perez said this when he stated;
“It just shows I’m still here,”
“I never went anywhere. I think the division kind of did. Obviously coming off all those fights being cancelled and my last three fights not going the way I wanted them to, but thank God for my team and my friends and family for pushing me in the right direction. I showed the division that I’m back in it.”
Alex Perez Hasn’t Lost Focus
Back in 2020, Perez was able to challenge Deiveson Figueiredo for the UFC Flyweight title. However, he was quickly submitted in the first round due to a guillotine choke. This was the start of his 3 fight-losing skid which lasted 3 and a half years. While the losing skid is not the best it has also started a tremendously unlucky run of fights being cancelled. Since that defeat to Figueiredo, Perez has had 9 fights cancelled. While these are unlucky it doesn’t help when he does make it into the cage he ends up losing the fight. While this would make many fighters lose confidence in such difficult times, Alex Perez has credited his team for making sure he hasn’t lost focus.
“Honestly, I had to change a lot of mental things,” Perez said. “Don’t get me wrong, when the fights started cancelling and stuff like that, I felt like, ‘Damn, what’s going on?’ I felt sad and stuff, but at the end of the day, like I tell people, just because something is going bad in your life doesn’t mean life stops. I have a son, I have my bills to pay. I have to keep grinding.
“My boy … was like, ‘Stuff those feelings way deep down until it’s time to come out.’ [Laughs.] I just kind of kept moving forward and listened to my team. … All these guys that stuck with me by my side and told me, ‘Hey, you’re one of the best in the world.’ I spar with these guys nonstop, I train with these guys, and I can hang with these guys. … Confidence, I still had it. It was just showing the world that I still had it and I think I did that tonight.”
Perez Back Into Title Contention
This victory over Nicolau gave him his confidence back as well as putting Perez back into title consideration. Alex Perez was going into this fight as the number 8 ranked flyweight in the UFC Rankings. This victory over the number 5 ranked flyweight will certainly move him up the rankings. This victory means Perez only needs one or two more victories before he can call his shot at the belt. However, this knockout victory may also give him a little more credit with his friends who would call him pillow hands. Perez said this when he explained;
“All my friends always call me ‘Pillow Hands,’ so now they can’t call me that anymore,” Perez said with a laugh. “My buddy … was calling me ‘A.S.P. — Alex Sleeping Pill Perez.’ Not because I was putting people to sleep, but because I was putting him to sleep every time he would commentate my fights, because I was taking people down. So it just shows I am evolving. … It showed off tonight and we’re going to keep working and go from there.”
