Alex Pereira came up short in his attempt to win a UFC title at the White House on June 14, which would make him the first to clinch UFC belts in three divisions, and former two-division champion Jon Jones posted a reaction video that was interpreted as a shot at him.
No words were said in the video, and Jones was wearing a goat necklace.
Jones, who won the UFC heavyweight title with a quick victory over Ciryl Gane, later posted a message congratulating Gane for winning the bout with a second-round knockout over the Brazilian.
“I saw the video and, honestly, I was surprised,” Pereira said in Portuguese. “If it were someone who had been provoking him and then lost, and he said something afterward, okay, that would make sense. But I’ve never spoken badly about Jon Jones. I’ve always respected him. A lot of people asked me, ‘Alex, do you consider yourself the greatest?’ Tell him to post any interview where I said that if I win, I’d be the greatest. If people consider me the greatest, okay. If they don’t, that’s okay too. I’m making my money, I’m making history. Whether I am or not, that’s not for me to decide.”
“Poatan” went up in weight after regaining his light heavyweight belt with a first-round knockout over Magomed Ankalaev in 2025 and was angling for a fight with Jones for the heavyweight title. The two have always been cordial to each other publicly and Jones had also voiced his interest in facing Pereira, but the UFC ultimately decided to go in a different direction.
“Honestly, I just don’t understand why he did that when an athlete is going through a tough moment,” Pereira said. “Nobody wants to lose. For someone to take a shot at a guy who has never taken a shot at him during a difficult moment like that, you know? When he was going through a tough time, what did I do? I supported him. But not everyone is the same. Everyone thinks differently.”
Despite the subtle shot taken, Pereira remains “a fan” and said he will not change his opinion about Jones.
“I’ve always spoken highly of him,” Pereira said. “I never said he was the greatest, but I’ve said he’s one of the greatest and that he can be considered the greatest. I’m not going to get into debates about who’s the greatest because then someone else comes along and people just start arguing, you know? But even with all of this, I’m not going to stop being a fan of his. I’ve always spoken well of him. I’m a fan. I just don’t understand why he did that.”
