Hollywood, FL — Featherweight Alexei Pergande improved to 7-0 at PFL Hollywood this past Thursday, care of a submission victory against Ethan Gross.
He came out of the bout seemingly without a scratch.
“It’s everything you can dream for. The last two fights I took minimal damage, and had great victories. So that’s all I need in this fighting game,” Pergande told media outlets including Cageside Press following the bout, originally a main card match-up that was shifted to the prelims due to production considerations. “Take the least amount of damage, and do the most amount of damage. And both of my opponents, these last two opponents are going home in stitches.”
Pergande feels like Gross, a 19-fight veteran with more than twice his own experience, was simply trying to survive in the bout.
“It didn’t really seem like he wanted to fight. He was just backing up, and on the backpedal the whole time. He didn’t want to actually fight me, he just wanted to survive. It’s kind of been like that for a lot of opponents I’ve been through. I’m just here to face better and better people.”
Later, he’d sum up the experience. “There’s nothing more I can ask for other than coming out clean and making it as violent as possible, and getting out quick with a paycheck.”
Getting a big submission, on a live broadcast, is something Pergande touched on as well. “All these people that watch on TV, that comment online, all these trolls, they don’t see what we go through. The mental struggles, the weight cuts, and everything leading up to the fight.” Saying he was “in love with the moment” even while walking out for the fight, “I just went out there with full confidence, and I did my thing,” stated Pergande.
“If you’re online hating on people, you’ve never stepped in the cage. You don’t know what we go through.”
As for what the future holds, “get me in there as soon as possible. Whatever PFL has planned for me, I’m cool with that,” he stated. In terms of his immediate future, however, Pergande is likely to be helping Paul Hughes for his rematch with Usman Nurmagomedov next.
Watch the full PFL Hollywood post-fight press conference with Alexei Pergande above.
