Phil De Fries claims Alex Pereira previously declined bout with Tom Aspinall

Phil De Fries, a friend and training partner of Tom Aspinall, stated that Alex Pereira had previously turned down the opportunity to fight Aspinall. De Fries noted that while he believes Tom is better than Ciryl Gane, the two heavyweights present different stylistic challenges for Pereira. The post asked followers to weigh in on which heavyweight would be a more difficult matchup for Pereira stylistically. Details about when this alleged offer was made or the circumstances surrounding it were not provided in the original statement. The claim adds to ongoing speculation about potential super-fights involving the light heavyweight champion moving up in weight.