Poatan’s High Fight IQ Wins Teixeira Over Before UFC White House

Glover Teixeira says poatan is working at a level that keeps teaching him. He called Alex Pereira’s fight approach “high-level” while Pereira prepares to face Ciryl Gane at UFC White House for the interim heavyweight strap.

Teixeira on Pereira’s reads

“His vision, his striking, the way he approaches a fight, the feints he uses, it’s all high-level,” Teixeira said. He added, “He has an incredibly high fight IQ and I’m learning a lot from him.”

That is a sharp turn for a fighter who once helped Pereira adapt to mixed martial arts after his full-time move from kickboxing. Teixeira said the two still train, though he described it simply: “We train very lightly these days.”

UFC White House pressure

Pereira is scheduled to co-headline UFC White House against Gane later this month, and Teixeira made the knockout expectation plain. “That’s the goal. That’s the focus,” he said, before adding, “‘Poatan’ is extremely well prepared.”

The heavy-handed praise lands with extra weight because Pereira is chasing a third UFC title opportunity, while Teixeira is trying to reset his own run in a different ring. He will headline Spaten Fight Night 3 against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua on Aug. 29 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, after both men retired on the same night at UFC 283 in January 2023.

Rua and Teixeira again

Teixeira lost a vacant title bout to Jamahal Hill at UFC 283, and Rua was stopped by Ihor Potieria on the same card. Now Teixeira says his boxing debut started as a dinner conversation in Rio de Janeiro in January, turning into a bout that puts his own name back in a main event.

For Pereira, the immediate task is the Gane fight and the interim heavyweight strap. For Teixeira, the message is already clear: the fighter he helped once is now the one he is studying.