Pereira lost the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship to Ankalaev in the main event of UFC 313 in March. “Poatan” was defeated via unanimous decision. The story of the fight was that Ankalaev was the aggressor, forcing Pereira to fight backwards, which limited the effectiveness of his striking.

In an interview with Ushatayka, Ankalaev’s coach Sukhrab Magomedov accused Pereira of being sticky and having ointment on his body to help him defend takedowns. He even claimed that Pereira’s mentor Glover Teixeira was known to grease.

Pereira, 37, became the subject of whispers this past week when UFC commentator Joe Rogan claimed on his podcast that Pereira came into the Ankalaev fight with a broken hand and norovirus. There's at least some truth to those rumors, as Pereira confirmed he dealt with injuries, but he declined to go into detail.