Pereira and Pavlovich set to meet in heavyweight bout at UFC 335 in Las Vegas on December 12

Alex Pereira and Sergei Pavlovich are set to meet in a heavyweight bout at UFC 335 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on December 12. The matchup was promoted on social media, with the post billing the fight as one that "is going to be violent."

The bout puts Pereira in the heavyweight division, a move up from the light heavyweight class where he is currently ranked third. The 39-year-old Brazilian, nicknamed Poatan, is 13-4-0 and trains out of Teixeira MMA & Fitness. His most recent recorded fight was a second-round KO/TKO loss to Ciryl Gane in a title bout at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14. Before that, he stopped Magomed Ankalaev in the first round at UFC 320 on October 4, 2025, avenging a unanimous-decision loss to Ankalaev at UFC 313 earlier that year. Pereira lands 5.16 significant strikes per minute at 62 percent accuracy.

Pavlovich enters on a three-fight winning streak. The 34-year-old Russian, 20-3-0, is ranked third at heavyweight and fights out of Eagles MMA. His most recent recorded fight was a first-round KO/TKO of Tallison Teixeira at UFC Fight Night: Song vs. Figueiredo on May 30. Before that, he beat Waldo Cortes Acosta by unanimous decision in August 2025 and Jairzinho Rozenstruik by the same method in February 2025. Pavlovich lands 4.43 significant strikes per minute at 44 percent accuracy.

Why it matters

• Pereira is moving up in weight, and Pavlovich will have a physical edge: he stands six-foot-three and owns an 84-inch reach, five inches longer than Pereira's 79 inches, even though Pereira is two centimeters taller at six-foot-four.
• Both men are ranked third in their respective divisions, so the fight pairs two top contenders from different weight classes.
• The numbers point to a striking-heavy contest. Pereira outpaces Pavlovich by 0.73 significant strikes per minute and holds an 18-point edge in accuracy, while Pavlovich averages 0.48 takedowns per 15 minutes to Pereira's 0.11.
• The two fighters come in with opposite momentum: Pavlovich has won three straight, while Pereira is coming off a stoppage loss.