Alex Pereira has suggested he may be considering retirement, stating he is now afraid to return to competition after what happened inside the cage and believes he has already accomplished what he set out to do. Ian Garry separately pledged that, upon becoming champion, he would defend the welterweight title far more frequently than Islam Makhachev, whom he noted fights only about once a year. UFC also rolled out its long-promised AI-powered rankings, which produced notable departures from the traditional media rankings — placing Blachowicz 15th in light heavyweight rather than fourth.
Alex Pereira has raised the prospect of walking away from the sport, while Ian Garry has made bold promises about future title defenses, and the UFC's newly launched AI-powered rankings have already generated controversy — all in a busy news cycle heading into the summer.
Pereira, the reigning light heavyweight champion, expressed uncertainty about returning to competition, stating that events inside the cage have left him afraid to fight again and that he feels he has achieved what he originally set out to accomplish. The Brazilian, who trains out of Teixeira MMA and Fitness, holds a 13-4 record and is 38 years old. Standing six-foot-four with a 79-inch reach, "Poatan" has been one of the most devastating strikers in the division, landing 5.16 significant strikes per minute at 62 percent accuracy — numbers that placed him among the elite finishers in UFC history.
Garry, meanwhile, used the occasion to take aim at pound-for-pound number one Islam Makhachev, vowing that when he wins the welterweight title he will defend it far more often than the Russian champion, who he noted fights roughly once a year. Makhachev, 34, carries a 28-1 record and has proven virtually untouchable in the welterweight division, blending a 58 percent striking accuracy with 3.2 takedowns per 15 minutes and 1.1 submission attempts per 15 minutes.
The UFC's rollout of AI-powered rankings added another layer of intrigue. The system produced results that diverged sharply from traditional media polls, most notably placing Jan Blachowicz 15th in the light heavyweight division. Blachowicz, ranked fifth in the AgentMMA database, is a 43-year-old Polish veteran with a 29-11-2 record and stands six-foot-two with a 78-inch reach.
Why it matters
- Pereira's retirement comments put the light heavyweight title picture in immediate flux
- Garry's public callout of Makhachev's activity raises pressure on the welterweight champion heading into any future negotiations
- The AI rankings controversy signals a potential shift in how fighter positioning is publicly communicated and debated
