Alex Pereira is calling foul on the finish of his interim heavyweight title fight with Ciryl Gane, alleging illegal strikes to the back of his head led to his stoppage loss at UFC Freedom 250.
Pereira was stopped by Gane in Round 2 of their UFC interim heavyweight title bout, which took place Sunday at the White House. In the aftermath, he claimed Gane landed illegal punches and elbows during the finishing sequence and criticized referee Herb Dean for not intervening.
"I think if it weren't for those punches, I wouldn't be in that situation," Pereira said, describing the sequence that led to the TKO. "When the jab landed, I fell and grabbed his legs. Throwing elbows and punches, the guy was desperate. He landed a punch that he couldn't even believe, and then he wanted to end the fight no matter what. The ref was there watching. The guy hits me, I fall, and he starts throwing punches. The guy sees it's an illegal hit, but he's there thinking, 'Bro, how can I stop this fight?'"
MMA Junkie reviewed the fight and counted about 18 punches and elbows in the finishing sequence, with several appearing to land on the back of Pereira's head. Pereira posted a video including photos showing swelling and marks on the back of his head, saying, "See the marks, the swelling in the back of my head?" and adding, "That can't happen, man. That ref, for me, has no moral standing".
The bout was booked after Tom Aspinall spent 2026 recovering from an eye injury following his no contest against Gane, in which Aspinall had accused Gane of eye pokes.
