Alex Pereira puzzled by Tom Aspinall’s comments about his resume prior to UFC 320

Alex Pereira can’t wrap his head around recent comments from UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall.

Pereira’s attention has been on avenging his loss to Magomed Ankalaev back in March. “Poatan” lost the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship via unanimous decision, and he’ll have a chance to reclaim the gold at UFC 320 on Saturday. A slew of pro MMA fighters have weighed in on the rematch, including Aspinall.

During an interview with TNT Sports, Aspinall shared his belief that Pereira had been used to favorable matchups prior to his first encounter with Ankalaev. The heavyweight titleholder admitted he feels Anakalev is a bad matchup for Pereira.

“Poatan” addressed Aspinall’s remarks during a media scrum and he has criticized the assessment (h/t MMAJunkie).

“We’re talking about the biggest organization in the world,” Pereira told MMA Junkie and other media through an interpreter at Wednesday’s media day. “I’m a guy who comes from kickboxing. I had no grappling experience. (I had) little experience in MMA. We’re talking about the highest level of the sport. If you were to put the worst guy in the UFC against me, I would be at a disadvantage (in MMA), so that makes no sense.”

Pereira has teased a potential move to the heavyweight division, but he’s also expressed interest in facing rising 205-pound contender Carlos Ulberg. Of course, Pereira’s main priority is ensuring he does all he can to defeat Ankalaev to become a two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. If Pereira can get his revenge on Ankalaev, then it would make him a three-time UFC titleholder, as he once held middleweight gold.

As for Aspinall, he’s focused on his own title fight coming up. The undisputed heavyweight champion will meet Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 321 on Oct. 25. Some are already wondering if Aspinall will take on the winner of Alexander Volkov vs. Jailton Almeida should he be successful against Gane. There’s also the possibility of Jon Jones, who has been pounding the table for a spot on the UFC White House card despite hesitancy from Dana White.