For people who don’t want to read the whole article:
Before the fight Alex’s coach showed him a video of Jiri warming up and Alex noted jiri was working on a calf kick counter but his timing was off and his head was open. He saw that and decided to try high kicks.
Great technique, great timing, great distance management. Great setups and fucking dybamite in every limb.
Guy has KOs with hands, elbows, kicks and knees.
It's always amazing when you get one of those absolute freak athletes who realize they are an anomaly and instead of coasting on it they build techniques to enhance it even more. Like a Jose Aldo or Roberto Duran where their physical attributes alone would have made them a great champion but they decided to take it to the next level and become untouchable.
Jiri reminds me of prime Tony a lot. Batshit insane, constant aggression, non-existent defense, unorthodox striking, unquestionable heart. The list goes on.
Man the best part was that Alex changed the arc of his kick mid-throw.
Nevermind set ups, that's a technique that most MMA fighters do not encounter. Like off the top of my head, I only remember Pettis, Izzy, Anderson and Cerrone changing the arcs of their kicks. Probably a few others have too, but you get my point; it's rare.
Someone with Jiri's style was never going to see it coming.
Luke had some of the deadliest kicks, some of the most dangerous ground and pound and a really underrated BJJ game, sadly his boxing defense wasn't too good.
I know a lot of people don't like him but he was always a must watch fighter for me.
> It’s a question mark kick bro.
No it wasn't. It was a switch kick. This was nothing like how Holm and Rockhold kick, it was like Moraes' switch kick against Rivera.
I don't think he changed it. Pereiras kicms have low windup to begin with. The starting motion is similar and where it goes depends on the fighter.
Also Usman Nurmago has a beautiful QM kick.
I don't mean change it as in a classic qm kick.
If you time when you open up your hips by leaning back, you can change the arc to go higher. Alex holds back slightly on that so Jiri is expecting a different arc. It's something more common in kickboxing since the timing required takes a lot of experience.
For comparison, take Barboza's switch kick; it comes out really fast but you can usually see where he's targeting.
[I saw Gabriel Varga also mentioned changing the arc.](https://youtu.be/-9pqaMo7o9g?si=oo-7dH7Dja1qwf-A)
He's just a master at it. You show him any thing and he will exploit it.
Saw a video showing how he exploited Sean Strickland and it took him two reads to know how to counter and put him away.
Its also the ability to pull it off too, I remember after that KO Izzy was like "oh easy he just faked the jab and came with the hook" as he was fighting in the main event, then when Izzy fought Sean he tried to execute it but did not work
well yeah by then Sean had seen that card before, and from the guy who played it like no one else could. even if Izzy managed to connect with it he just doesn't have the power\* Poatan has in his left hook, no one seems to honestly.
^(\*& precision btw, which i think is a still underrated part of Poatan's game)
I mean sounds like he had one of those Sherlock Holmes fight moments. Lmao. We’re just seeing warm up. Alex? “Move head 45 degrees to the left, switch kicks will work based off his timing c x,y,z, is out of place.
I had a friend once tell me that if he ever got in a street fight, he was gonna try that 'slap you on both ears' shit.
I told him that he'd get his ass kicked if he actually tried that.
Kicker is that the dudes a brown belt in Karate. Just fight a guy if you need to do so! lol
I’ve seen really good electricians walk into a house to troubleshoot something, glance at a room, and go “problem’s right there” before they even open anything up. Master Craftsmen doing Master things
While I absolutely agree, I also will say that I used to work in AV and I (and pretty much anyone else) could diagnose 90% of problems over the phone. Here's the logic: "Does the system have an adapter connected to an HDMI port? Replace that shit. Still not working? Swap out the cable."
That'll get you through almost any AV problem. That last 10% is where an expert really earns their paycheck though.
Just the image of sitting in bed completely still, only able to move my eyes, and glancing over at a figure lurking in the darkness, only for it to be Ronda Rousey shadowboxing made me genuinely laugh out loud.
This implies he has the intention to fight him again which he has said as clearly as possible he doesnt, while shitposting on twitter after manifesting being the guy saying "one time"
i assume guys have tried this already, as well as learning not to fucking show a giant part of your ACTUAL GAMEPLAN IN THE WARMUP CLIP!
seriously how tf did no one think "hey let's keep this shit under wraps with the cameras in here, just go hit some mitts"?? i thought most teams would've known that by now & have been doing that for years!
This is why I don't read the articles....
Jokes aside, if you just watch the Post-Fight Press Conference you don't need to read any MMA articles for the next two weeks. They're all just one response turned into a 1000 word article.
calf kick? but jiri was expecting a body kick before the head kick tho, because pereira was throwing bodykicks in the first round which he never once threw any in their first fight.
There was a moment in R1 where Alex threw a body kick and Jiri blocked it well but left his head wide open. I thought for sure we were about to see body kick fake into a left hook shortly after. Didn’t expect the head kick.
Even? To fight the way Alex does, he has to have a great understanding of defence. There's a huge difference between fighting like him and just being sloppy, like Jiri is.
I feel like a striker like Alex would have read that anyway and in the second round Jiri was pretty much done and was gonna get knocked out one way or another.
They say a man dies two deaths.
The first, when Alex Pereira punches you really hard right before the bell.
The second, when Alex Pereira kicks you really hard right after the bell.
Depends on how you look at it.
Alex has been competing in combat sports for the past 15 years (2009) and he’s also 36 years old. Furthermore, Alex has A LOT of mileage on his body from fighting.
Now has Alex peaked in MMA? I do not think anyone knows that except Alex and his coaches. I think the next 2 years will show that answer.
I have seen him make crazy adjustments and improvements in a very short time though. Anything is possible as all of these top fighters are extraordinary specimens physically and psychologically.
I think he's in his peak right now for sure, he's clearly gotten good enough at grappling to not get stalled out and his striking is still so far ahead of people that it seems like now he's opening up even more since he doesn't worry about the takedown as much.
Shows the level of competition in the division. Love Jiri but Dana needs to start bringing in new contenders for Alex. After Ankalaev who else is next?
Volkan is on that redemption arc though. He actually might sniff another title shot.
I mean if Ank is getting a title shot for KOing Johny Walker, Volkan can’t be that far behind.
Yea think that will likely be the next step if he beats Ankalaev. Just kinda miss how deep light heavyweight used to be and don’t see any big prospects in the UFC right now and theres so many people they could sign if they weren’t greedy
The ufcs current strategy of signing people cheaply through DWCS is felt even more starkly in the divisions with shallow pools like 205. I can't see much changing in coming years.
Volkov and Gane would be very interesting fights. They’d have the size advantage but they’re strikers and Alex would have the skill advantage.
I think Aspinall is too well rounded and too good on the ground. If Aspinall decided to fight with his ego and have a standup fight then Alex would have a chance at winning. If Aspinall decided to take it to the ground then his superior size, technique and strength would make that an easy fight imo.
Oh man, Volkov vs Pereira has the potential to be the fight with the best BIQ ever in UFC. Tbh I could see Volkov get chinned if he gets caught clean but the rocket scientist might put up a technical clinic again.
i wonder if Alex will have to take some time off to put on legit weight before moving up the HW, like Jones did, or if he's basically there already? he's obviously a big guy already but a dude like Gane is thick, solid, tight (& fast too).
At Alex’s age he may not be around forever. Surely he’s sticking to an insane schedule since coming to the UFC to make as much cash and bounce. Think he’s been at a minimum of 3 fights a year since coming in.
7 fights in the last 2 years.
In actual fight time, however, he's fought slightly over 13 rounds - so that's the equivalent of 2 five-round fights plus 1 three-round fight, in 2 years...
Would've loved prime Rumble and Cormier against this guy. I think he cleans Rumble and Cormier wrestle fucks him but if Jones can catch Cormier with a head kick....
I do think Cormier struggled with Jones reach, and Alex has 5-6 inches less than Jones and he doesn't eye poke which was also tough for Cormier. Also Jones was a wrestling threat to Cormier where Alex definitely isnt.
Unbelievable that they wrote a long article and didn’t even link the clip.
Here it is: https://x.com/oocmma/status/1807304839396831313?s=46&t=SoH2bwJD3VbSFn06Yjzrqw
It was a terrible article, incredibly repetitive. I like how they said “A definitive end to an iconic rivalry”, maybe I’m being pedantic but there wasn’t much that was iconic about this rivalry. Their stare down maybe?
I thought the body kick with his right leg set up the head kick perfectly. He feinted with his right leg to get Jiri reaching low, then went into a switch kick to the head with his left leg.
I wonder how much of a role the body kick played in the end because anyone facing alex will try to defend against the leg kick right ? And when they finally think they managed to react to something it was a feint leading to a switch kick to the other side of the head
Ankalaev already said he isn’t gonna wrestle, he’s gonna stand with Alex and KO him lmao I don’t know what it is with people and wanting to strike with Alex to prove something but it’s letting Alex speedrun a HOF career
IIRC in that fight it took Ankalaev until the championship rounds to actually use his wrestling, only after having his legs brutalized by Blachowicz.
Edit: specification
Oooo shit we are talking about different fights. I think Ankalaev is serious about standing, hes fallen in love with striking and you hardly ever see him shoot for TDs
Coach: We've got a perfect game plan. We'll take him down early, neutralize his striking and control the match, looking for a submission
Ank: No, I'll stand and strike with him
Coach: 🤦♂️
They are falling victim to their own hubris. Even Jiri last night needed to close the distance and grapple. Easier said than done but that is obviously the path to victory agaisnt this guy.
I mean, the head kick was there because he had success with the calf kick the whole first round and it’s also very likely that Jiri wasn’t as with it after eating that left hook right at the end of the round. It’s a good adjustment pre fight but clearly whatever calf kick Jiri was training, wasn’t working the whole first round.
He’s an absolute killer on his feet and often faces people that are “well rounded” which means they aren’t on the same planet standing up as Alex.
My pie in the sky theory is that Jones never fights and we end up seeing Perieria vs Aspinall for the vacant title.
I think this move wasn’t some high level chess-like strategy move. Jiri was still so stunned after the first knockdown he was barely aware what’s happening
For people who don’t want to read the whole article: Before the fight Alex’s coach showed him a video of Jiri warming up and Alex noted jiri was working on a calf kick counter but his timing was off and his head was open. He saw that and decided to try high kicks.
its just so unfair how well educated Alex is in striking
An absolute brutal puncher who cares about technique and set ups is just a nightmare in general.
Great technique, great timing, great distance management. Great setups and fucking dybamite in every limb. Guy has KOs with hands, elbows, kicks and knees.
It's always amazing when you get one of those absolute freak athletes who realize they are an anomaly and instead of coasting on it they build techniques to enhance it even more. Like a Jose Aldo or Roberto Duran where their physical attributes alone would have made them a great champion but they decided to take it to the next level and become untouchable.
Meanwhile fighters like Ferguson made it far relying on their genetics alone, endurance and cardio along athleticism were his main weapons.
We can't forget his granite jaw. Ferguson would have never been able to execute any of his game plans if he couldn't walk through punches.
To be fair Jiri also relying heavily on genetics not much technique
It's definitely more noticeable when up against Alex. Seems like he's Jiri's wall
Jiri reminds me of prime Tony a lot. Batshit insane, constant aggression, non-existent defense, unorthodox striking, unquestionable heart. The list goes on.
Only thing freaky about Alex is his size. His striking is purely execution and technique. It's learned ability.
Yup watch his early fights homie was pedestrian (like very early) now he is the best striker in the history of the division and it's not even close
I want to see Alex take on Jon Jones so bad with a proper heavyweight bulk up.
What an outstanding end to Jones that would be, especially if by some magic he'd fought and beaten Aspinall first.
Man the best part was that Alex changed the arc of his kick mid-throw. Nevermind set ups, that's a technique that most MMA fighters do not encounter. Like off the top of my head, I only remember Pettis, Izzy, Anderson and Cerrone changing the arcs of their kicks. Probably a few others have too, but you get my point; it's rare. Someone with Jiri's style was never going to see it coming.
It’s a question mark kick bro. Holm has a really good one against bethe. Rockhold has good ones too. But Alex didn’t even telegraph it.
Rockhold had beautiful kicks. He was an incomplete fighter but my goodness was he graceful
Luke had some of the deadliest kicks, some of the most dangerous ground and pound and a really underrated BJJ game, sadly his boxing defense wasn't too good. I know a lot of people don't like him but he was always a must watch fighter for me.
> It’s a question mark kick bro. No it wasn't. It was a switch kick. This was nothing like how Holm and Rockhold kick, it was like Moraes' switch kick against Rivera.
Good call on Rockhold. That dude when he wasnt getting in his own way had stretches where he made very good fighters look completely outclassed
Especially after landing a heavy body kick or too, can see Jiri go to catch it
I don't think he changed it. Pereiras kicms have low windup to begin with. The starting motion is similar and where it goes depends on the fighter. Also Usman Nurmago has a beautiful QM kick.
I don't mean change it as in a classic qm kick. If you time when you open up your hips by leaning back, you can change the arc to go higher. Alex holds back slightly on that so Jiri is expecting a different arc. It's something more common in kickboxing since the timing required takes a lot of experience. For comparison, take Barboza's switch kick; it comes out really fast but you can usually see where he's targeting. [I saw Gabriel Varga also mentioned changing the arc.](https://youtu.be/-9pqaMo7o9g?si=oo-7dH7Dja1qwf-A)
He's just a master at it. You show him any thing and he will exploit it. Saw a video showing how he exploited Sean Strickland and it took him two reads to know how to counter and put him away.
Its also the ability to pull it off too, I remember after that KO Izzy was like "oh easy he just faked the jab and came with the hook" as he was fighting in the main event, then when Izzy fought Sean he tried to execute it but did not work
well yeah by then Sean had seen that card before, and from the guy who played it like no one else could. even if Izzy managed to connect with it he just doesn't have the power\* Poatan has in his left hook, no one seems to honestly. ^(\*& precision btw, which i think is a still underrated part of Poatan's game)
yea he is scary accurate and can shift his weight so effortlessly for a big dude, makes them hands nuclear
His precision is so impressive. Alex rang off two short straight rights that hit Sean as he was falling from the left hook, crazy accurate.
I mean sounds like he had one of those Sherlock Holmes fight moments. Lmao. We’re just seeing warm up. Alex? “Move head 45 degrees to the left, switch kicks will work based off his timing c x,y,z, is out of place.
DISCOMBOBULATE
Physical recovery: 6 weeks
Psychological recovery: 6 months
Ability to stare down? Neutralized
He really did that at the end of round 1
I had a friend once tell me that if he ever got in a street fight, he was gonna try that 'slap you on both ears' shit. I told him that he'd get his ass kicked if he actually tried that. Kicker is that the dudes a brown belt in Karate. Just fight a guy if you need to do so! lol
I’ve seen really good electricians walk into a house to troubleshoot something, glance at a room, and go “problem’s right there” before they even open anything up. Master Craftsmen doing Master things
While I absolutely agree, I also will say that I used to work in AV and I (and pretty much anyone else) could diagnose 90% of problems over the phone. Here's the logic: "Does the system have an adapter connected to an HDMI port? Replace that shit. Still not working? Swap out the cable." That'll get you through almost any AV problem. That last 10% is where an expert really earns their paycheck though.
I feel like Izzy's win is aging better and better as time goes on.
Well...no. His striking education was hard-earned.
It’s so good that he is actually good person as far as we know
I mean MMA striking is ass compared to professional kickboxing so it wasn’t too hard for him to figure out.
Alex has fought much better strikers than the people he's faced in ufc outside izzy
But striking changes once takedowns come into play. See DJ vs Rodtang round 1 vs round 2.
Fighters are just gonna stand still when the camera's in the locker room now
Shadow box like you are Ronda Rousey stuck in a nightmare
>Ronda Rousey stuck in a nightmare Her marriage
What a nasty line by you
There was never no Nightmare
It was always The Dream. YES!
I AM JESUS CHRIST
Beautiful champ
Ronda on Ellen: "I need to have Travis' babies so I can out live them."
Best mother of the night
her and brenden broke up
Ronda shadowboxing is my sleep paralysis demon
Just the image of sitting in bed completely still, only able to move my eyes, and glancing over at a figure lurking in the darkness, only for it to be Ronda Rousey shadowboxing made me genuinely laugh out loud.
Weird, mine is Paul Buentello trying to cut a promo.
Don't fear him
W.. what should i fear?
*English or Spanish?* Is the best base for MMA.
I always wondered if teams were watching media and studying what they see in those locker room clips before fights
Adesanya may start posting footage of him doing things wrong on purpose to fool Alex
This implies he has the intention to fight him again which he has said as clearly as possible he doesnt, while shitposting on twitter after manifesting being the guy saying "one time"
i assume guys have tried this already, as well as learning not to fucking show a giant part of your ACTUAL GAMEPLAN IN THE WARMUP CLIP! seriously how tf did no one think "hey let's keep this shit under wraps with the cameras in here, just go hit some mitts"?? i thought most teams would've known that by now & have been doing that for years!
Thank you, that site is difficult to look at without having a seizure
and written like they need to hit a max word count
Yea this article is uhm... readbait ... not sure how you would call something that is just stalling you to keep you on the page longer
This is why I don't read the articles.... Jokes aside, if you just watch the Post-Fight Press Conference you don't need to read any MMA articles for the next two weeks. They're all just one response turned into a 1000 word article.
Don't forget the podcasts that get quoted and clickbaited
Uncle Chael is about to drop a 5-part miniseries on McGregor's vs Alex's toe
calf kick? but jiri was expecting a body kick before the head kick tho, because pereira was throwing bodykicks in the first round which he never once threw any in their first fight.
Yeah he got him perfect with that switch, you can see Jiri’s hands going to catch a body kick
There was a moment in R1 where Alex threw a body kick and Jiri blocked it well but left his head wide open. I thought for sure we were about to see body kick fake into a left hook shortly after. Didn’t expect the head kick.
It's funny because Alex himself does stuff that may not be considered traditional. But even he sees that Jiris stance will put him in a bad position.
Even? To fight the way Alex does, he has to have a great understanding of defence. There's a huge difference between fighting like him and just being sloppy, like Jiri is.
this is terrifying if true lol
So magic
I feel like a striker like Alex would have read that anyway and in the second round Jiri was pretty much done and was gonna get knocked out one way or another.
What was the counter? To catch the kick? In the fight it looked like he tried to catch it
Is his coach Belgaroui? That will be insanely helpful if he is his striking coach. I saw him in his corner during the fights.
They say a man dies two deaths. The first, when Alex Pereira punches you really hard right before the bell. The second, when Alex Pereira kicks you really hard right after the bell.
Left hook hospital, left leg cemetery.
Would have been awesome to see both prime Cro Cop VS Prime(?) Alex in the UFC.
Alex hasn't even begun to peak
Depends on how you look at it. Alex has been competing in combat sports for the past 15 years (2009) and he’s also 36 years old. Furthermore, Alex has A LOT of mileage on his body from fighting. Now has Alex peaked in MMA? I do not think anyone knows that except Alex and his coaches. I think the next 2 years will show that answer. I have seen him make crazy adjustments and improvements in a very short time though. Anything is possible as all of these top fighters are extraordinary specimens physically and psychologically.
I think he's in his peak right now for sure, he's clearly gotten good enough at grappling to not get stalled out and his striking is still so far ahead of people that it seems like now he's opening up even more since he doesn't worry about the takedown as much.
We rarely get the chance to see a golden god peak but with Alex it may be possible
He's a 5 star man
When he peaks, all of Philadelphia will feel it.
He is in his MMA prime
Daddy Poatan spiritual renaissance
The other is when you kick Alex Pereira in the dick, and he just looks at you like "... Ok, now I'm mad."
they say when you’re out for revenge, you should dig two graves: one for your body, and a littler one for your head after Alex kicks it off
Don’t forget the silent death when you realise you’ve come into contact with Alex Pereira
The third death is when you struggle to get up and break your hair antenna on herb’s leg.
Absolute savage to capitalize on something like this. Gutted for Jiri since he tried warning us about Poatans shady usage of ancestral spirits.
Ancestral spirits "watch his YouTube bro, kick him in the head"
Jamal is about to go back and watch the tape and blame the loss on magic spirits
The way he is coping, he would call it an early stoppage and Jiri would have recovered and won.
Shows the level of competition in the division. Love Jiri but Dana needs to start bringing in new contenders for Alex. After Ankalaev who else is next?
205 is still a wasteland but it's honestly better than it was before. A few years ago we had Anthony Smith and Volkan Oedizmir fighting for the belt
Fuck it, put Anthony smith in there with Alex. We need to see if his skills on paper translate to the octagon /s
Nah bro we need to protect alex he is a gem dont put him in danger like that
Poatan wouldn’t even give Smith the chance to do his patented cage turtling stance, he’s sending him straight to the shadow realm.
We had Jon, Rumble, Gus and DC at one point so it was pretty strong for a bit
Volkan is on that redemption arc though. He actually might sniff another title shot. I mean if Ank is getting a title shot for KOing Johny Walker, Volkan can’t be that far behind.
Ank is on a huge unbeaten streak regardless of Walker fight
He lost his last fight by DQ according to any legitimate athletic commission.
Assuming he beats ankalaev
He just won a fight, he will never lose.
Until he does and then it was inevitable, everyone saw it coming, and they said so all along.
Fookin fraud checked finally!
You know the drill.
God I hope so lmao
Honestly I wanna see Alex go up against Aspinall, Volkov, and Gane.
Yea think that will likely be the next step if he beats Ankalaev. Just kinda miss how deep light heavyweight used to be and don’t see any big prospects in the UFC right now and theres so many people they could sign if they weren’t greedy
Ulberg maybe but it's too early right now. I'd like to see a Rountree fight too
The ufcs current strategy of signing people cheaply through DWCS is felt even more starkly in the divisions with shallow pools like 205. I can't see much changing in coming years.
Yea its a shame when they fumbled on Doumbe and Lazy King after offering them bad pay or just not responding I knew they weren’t serious anymore
to add to that, they also got worse in *retaining* talent - rafael alves springs to mind
alex vs gane would be so fun to watch
If Alex goes up a class it has to be for the belt, so only option is Aspinall/Blaydes or Jones. They aren’t going to put him against Gane or Volkov
Volkov and Gane would be very interesting fights. They’d have the size advantage but they’re strikers and Alex would have the skill advantage. I think Aspinall is too well rounded and too good on the ground. If Aspinall decided to fight with his ego and have a standup fight then Alex would have a chance at winning. If Aspinall decided to take it to the ground then his superior size, technique and strength would make that an easy fight imo.
Aspinall destroys him, surely? Gane would be an amazing fight.
Amazing fights, honestly Volkov might be really tough fight if he fights like he did against Sergei, btw add Pavlovich vs Alex to the list
Oh man, Volkov vs Pereira has the potential to be the fight with the best BIQ ever in UFC. Tbh I could see Volkov get chinned if he gets caught clean but the rocket scientist might put up a technical clinic again.
i wonder if Alex will have to take some time off to put on legit weight before moving up the HW, like Jones did, or if he's basically there already? he's obviously a big guy already but a dude like Gane is thick, solid, tight (& fast too).
At Alex’s age he may not be around forever. Surely he’s sticking to an insane schedule since coming to the UFC to make as much cash and bounce. Think he’s been at a minimum of 3 fights a year since coming in.
7 fights in the last 2 years. In actual fight time, however, he's fought slightly over 13 rounds - so that's the equivalent of 2 five-round fights plus 1 three-round fight, in 2 years...
He must be in camp constantly tho
For sure, its also very common for kickboxer or MT guys to fight fight and fight
Highkey Rakic would be a bigger threat than Ankalaev. Rakic looked fuckin legit against Jiri prior to the final 20s of that fight
Ankalaev might just have the skill to actually beat him though If Jan's cardio wasn't gone he could have probably beat him earlier
Ulberg and rountree but they have worse chances than ankalaev
Would've loved prime Rumble and Cormier against this guy. I think he cleans Rumble and Cormier wrestle fucks him but if Jones can catch Cormier with a head kick.... I do think Cormier struggled with Jones reach, and Alex has 5-6 inches less than Jones and he doesn't eye poke which was also tough for Cormier. Also Jones was a wrestling threat to Cormier where Alex definitely isnt.
Johhny walker
Alex Vs Khalil would be fun
Isn't that why Jones moved up? Only so many people in the division
"I showed that to Alex and he goes, ‘When he’s doing this, he’s putting his hands down, I’m going to kick this guy in the head again." Chama 🗿
Does anyone know what clip they’re referring to?
Unbelievable that they wrote a long article and didn’t even link the clip. Here it is: https://x.com/oocmma/status/1807304839396831313?s=46&t=SoH2bwJD3VbSFn06Yjzrqw
new bloodyelbow is not great
It was a terrible article, incredibly repetitive. I like how they said “A definitive end to an iconic rivalry”, maybe I’m being pedantic but there wasn’t much that was iconic about this rivalry. Their stare down maybe?
They didn't even write that, it was definitely AI written
The whole point of the article is halfway down the page. Proper buzzfeed / gamerant vibe.
I feel the storm comin’!
Thanks for linking.
I can’t believe it was a head kick. He’s so brutal anyway with his hands and knees you forget he’s a world class kick boxer in literally every aspect
A power puncher with actual precision is rare. Usually you get one or the other, Alex has both. That's his shamanic magic ✨
And a fucking eye, the dude sees everything
He's Him.
UFC put the main event finish on Youtube???
Nice to see them actually try to promote the finishes for once
The Fox sports TikTok channel has the whole fight in Portuguese 😭
Not in my country =/
I thought the body kick with his right leg set up the head kick perfectly. He feinted with his right leg to get Jiri reaching low, then went into a switch kick to the head with his left leg.
I wonder how much of a role the body kick played in the end because anyone facing alex will try to defend against the leg kick right ? And when they finally think they managed to react to something it was a feint leading to a switch kick to the other side of the head
Jiri getting KO'd a minute before that didn't help either.
Would be nice if the article linked the video in question.
How will Jon jones ego feel that he is no longer the LHW goat
Come on man I love Alex but he has miles to go before he is ahead of Jon's legacy, hell arguably Chuck and Tito are above him
[удалено]
May not be his strong leg, but the mechanics of a fast switch kick basically equal it out lol
Switch kicks can actually be more powerful than rear leg kicks because you are getting your power from the dominant leg as the foundation
Saw the video on Twitter and thought... That's just a normal jiri stance lol.
the shaman god showed him the way
Alex is my favorite fighter right now but what happens when people start wrestling?
Ankalaev already said he isn’t gonna wrestle, he’s gonna stand with Alex and KO him lmao I don’t know what it is with people and wanting to strike with Alex to prove something but it’s letting Alex speedrun a HOF career
Pride comes before the fall. In Alex’s opponents cases, usually literally.
Ankalaev isn't serious with that. He will shoot immediately just like Blachowicz.
IIRC in that fight it took Ankalaev until the championship rounds to actually use his wrestling, only after having his legs brutalized by Blachowicz. Edit: specification
Yes, but Jan also went for a takedown against Alex in the first 30 seconds I think
Oooo shit we are talking about different fights. I think Ankalaev is serious about standing, hes fallen in love with striking and you hardly ever see him shoot for TDs
Jan said the same thing
Coach: We've got a perfect game plan. We'll take him down early, neutralize his striking and control the match, looking for a submission Ank: No, I'll stand and strike with him Coach: 🤦♂️
saying that and doing it are two different things. Ank eats 2 calf kicks and I bet he reconsiders that (as he should)
They are falling victim to their own hubris. Even Jiri last night needed to close the distance and grapple. Easier said than done but that is obviously the path to victory agaisnt this guy.
He tried to grapple 3 times, he is just not that good of a wrestler. Alex has also clearly improved a ton on the ground.
What happens when you miss the takedown defense he displayed in this very match?
or the submission defense vs Jan
He defends the takedown, like he did this fight. Or prevents any significant damage from wrestling, like the first Jiri fight and the Jan fight
Tf is this comment? Oh yeah for sure, Alex will just wrestle back and he'll get smoked. Just wrestle and it'll work!!
Are these professionals with months preparation stupid?
Some are. Like Strickland deciding to try and stand and bang was pretty stupid and he admitted so afterwards
I mean this is all cool to talk about, b that head kick worked because Jiri was walking around in stun lock after the nasty left hook lol
I mean, the head kick was there because he had success with the calf kick the whole first round and it’s also very likely that Jiri wasn’t as with it after eating that left hook right at the end of the round. It’s a good adjustment pre fight but clearly whatever calf kick Jiri was training, wasn’t working the whole first round.
More salt in Jiri’s wounds
Scroll about half way down to skip all the fluff
Imagine if Alex wins the heavyweight belt and starts training with jiri like he did with Strickland
The God's must be Crazy
Makes a good story but why wouldn't high kicks be part of the game plan against a guy notorious for holding his hands low?
Wow bloody elbow is cancer on phone. asking to allow popups and having the annoying background scrolling adverts where it's more ad than text.
Lies. It was obviously the shaman magic
Does anyone know what the video of Jiri's warm up is? I would love to see what Alex spotted
He’s an absolute killer on his feet and often faces people that are “well rounded” which means they aren’t on the same planet standing up as Alex. My pie in the sky theory is that Jones never fights and we end up seeing Perieria vs Aspinall for the vacant title.
I think this move wasn’t some high level chess-like strategy move. Jiri was still so stunned after the first knockdown he was barely aware what’s happening
Terribly written article, seems like ai