Last Man to Beat Alex Pereira in Kickboxing Earns a UFC Contract

Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight kingpin Alex Pereira helped rival Artem Vakhitov get into the UFC.

Vakhitov (3-1) earned a first-round technical knockout over Islem Masraf at DWCS 2024: Week 9 on Tuesday. However, UFC CEO Dana White contemplated before giving Vakhitov a contract as he did not expect the amount of clinching that transpired. White called on his biggest star and Vakhitov’s former foe in Pereira, who was sitting cageside, for his opinion.

“This was an interesting fight, more clinching than I expected. And you obviously got the job done, you got the finish. And I actually called Alex back with me to talk about this fight and your win… And Alex said you absolutely, positively deserve a shot in the UFC.”

Vakhitov is a former two-time Glory kickboxing light heavyweight champ with five defenses on his resume. Vakhitov has a 1-1 head-to-head record against Pereira, who beat him via split decision the first time and the Russian avenged the loss via majority decision in the rematch.

Vakhitov made his MMA debut in 2023, where he suffered a first-round injury loss. He has since racked up three consecutive first-round finishes, with the latest earning him the UFC contract on Tuesday.