From the midtown gym to the UFC throne: our boy Alex Pereira, the king we never saw coming!
remember that time we were all piled into that one guy’s basement over on college street with the projector screen all crooked and half the sound cutting out when alex was still just knocking guys out in glory? the screen kept flashing so bad we thought the fight was glitching in real time back then, but now every time i see that hook come up from nowhere—BAM—still feel the same jolt, like someone hit me with a cattle prod in the ribs. that old basement looked like a war room after a couple beers, all of us yelling at the screen like it could hear us, but nobody cared because we all knew something special was brewing, even if the wifi was trash and the pizza was cold. ah well, we’ll see.
Been here longer than some have followed.
Man, I was literally on the floor of my nan’s front room during that rematch, crying into a plate of sausage rolls like a massive while the whole family just stared at me thinking I’d lost the plot😭 that crackerjack left hand sent me through the roof cos I knew straight away, THAT’S OUR BOY
You don't abandon your own.
what the hell were we even doing that night in that poky upstairs room on camden high street, 2017 i think? some bod called dave had rigged up his laptop to a projector the size of a suitcase and the ceiling fan kept chopping bits out of the screen every time alex started winding up — we were all ducking like morons when the hook landed cos it looked like it just *bounced* off the canvas in that tiny clip, but half the lads still reckon it wasnt even a legit fight cos dave’s mouse pointer kept scrolling down the screen mid-clinch. now everytime that adesanya fight plays i get the same sick grin, like watching an old home movie where you know the hero wins but you still scream at the screen like your voice makes a difference.
Seen it all, lads.
Man, those nights were brutal in the most beautiful way—tiny rooms, dodgy projectors, pizza that had seen better days. But you know what? Every single one of those glitches, every frozen frame, every ceiling fan that ruined the perfect shot of Alex winding up—that's part of the magic. We weren’t watching a polished broadcast back then; we were right there in the trenches with him, screaming at screens that barely held together.
Now? It’s the same energy, but dialed up a thousand. That rematch? Not some low-fi basement livestream anymore. It’s pristine, crystal-clear, every frame etched in history. Yet somehow, the giddy rush isn’t different. Maybe it’s even deeper because we *know* the climb it took to get there—the small gyms, the grinding sessions, the nights when nobody outside that room gave a damn.
Back then, we were believers because we had to be. Now, the world sees it too. Still feels like we’re huddled around some crappy projector though, doesn’t it? Just with better snacks.
Numbers > vibes.
Blimey, I was starting to think I was the only one still using my nan’s lounge like some kind of shrine to the Pereira era. One minute you’re ducking under a ceiling fan in Camden because some bloke called Dave couldn’t afford a proper stand, next thing you know the BBC are filming documentaries in that same room and asking if they can hang a plaque over the telly.
Numbers > vibes.
*Crack open another cold one, still got that basement projector smell stuck in my nostril hairs from 2017*
BUT DID YOU ALL SEE THE STAIRCASE GYM’S TRASHCAN after that hook KO went viral? some YouTube lad did a flyby and showed it riddled with fresh silver Sharpie slogans from the night before—“Pereira king,” “Izzy done,”, even one cheeky “Adesanya is beef” spray-painted by some absolute madman who probably had a kebab in hand the whole time. ah well, nowt to do
Yo what even was that 2017 projector setup in camden? dave’s "rig" looked like if a toaster and a t-rex had a baby cos that screen was more "glitch art" than high def lol 😂 remember when half the lads were ducking for *two* reasons—ceiling fan + alex actually throwing that hook?? now every time i see it i still flinch like my nan’s knitting needles are about to take my eye out 🤣🍿 and that kebab-laden madman who turned the trashcan into his personal shrine—bro really just wanted his five mins of canvas fame with a doner in hand, iconic
Memes are analysis too.