Las Vegas, NV — Brazilian welterweight Michel Pereira expected a “spectacular fight” with Niko Price at UFC 264, he told Cageside Press ahead of the event.
He got just that. Pereira and Price battled in what would have been Fight of the Night had Sean O’Malley and Kris Moutinho not come along shortly after. Pereira took home the unanimous decision win.
“Niko Price is a very tough guy. He took so many punches and knees, and he kept moving,” Pereira said following the bout, speaking back stage at the T-Mobile Arena. “That was a surprise for me, because I punched him very hard, and he was still moving.”
While Pereira could bee seen wiping the blood from his brow, “I feel good right now,” he stated. “The doctors, they checked me right now, I’m okay. I just need two weeks, take a rest, then I can start getting ready for the next fight.”
The question now turns to what comes next, as Pereira has put together three consecutive wins in the UFC’s deep welterweight division. Both before the fight, speaking to Cageside Press, and following the event in his interview with Joe Rogan, he called for a fight with Nate Diaz.
He reiterated that desire with the media Saturday. “The guy I want to fight is Nate Diaz. But to fight the top guys, I’ve got to be one of the top 15 in the rankings,” said Pereira. “And after tonight, after beating Niko Price, I think I’m going to get one of the 15 positions.”
Watch the full UFC 264 post-fight press scrum with Michel Pereira above.
