Alex
Pereira has a date with history on Sunday, and if things go as
planned, he will be on to the next challenge immediately.
Pereira (13-3) faces Ciryl Gane
(13-2) for the interim heavyweight title at
UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday in Washington, D.C. If he prevails,
he will be the first fighter to win UFC titles in three different
weight classes, a feat that would bolster his already legendary
résumé.
An interim title win would also set up a unification bout with
Tom
Aspinall, who has been out of action since his title defense
against Gane ended in a no contest due to an inadvertent eye poke
by the challenger. However, in light of Aspinall’s long recovery,
which has reportedly required surgery and may again, “Poatan”
claims to be unwilling to wait.
Pereira, who turns 39 in July, wants to fight as soon as possible
and he doesn’t think Aspinall will be an option, telling UFC on TNT
Sports:
“I don’t think that Tom is going to be ready. I don’t think he’s
even training. I think it’s about recovering from the surgery. I’m
a guy that, I want to get ready, I want to fight somebody as soon
as possible. I want another fight as soon as possible. Again, I’m
38 years old, I ain’t got time to lose.”
While it is not common for interim belts to be defended rather than
unified with the regular belt, it won’t be the first time in UFC
heavyweight history: Aspinall defended his interim strap against
Curtis
Blaydes when the promotion could not agree on terms with
Jon
Jones, then was promoted to undisputed champ when Jones retired
last year.
“I don’t think Tom is going to be ready”
🗿AlexPereira on a potential future UFC fight with TomAspinall 🤯
📹: @CarolinePearce
/ @AlexPereiraUFC
#Freedom250 |
#UFCWhiteHouse | Sunday | Stream TNT Sports on HBO Max pic.twitter.com/7BBhfciB59— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt)
June 8, 2026
UFC Freedom 250 takes place June 14 on the south lawn of the White
House in Washington, D.C. The seven-fight card is headlined by a
lightweight title unification bout between Ilia
Topuria and Justin
Gaethje, while Pereira and Gane are scheduled to fight for the
interim heavyweight belt in the co-main event.