Michel Pereira Record: 32-15-0

The viral welterweight years

Pereira made an unforgettable promotional debut in May 2019, knocking out Danny Roberts with a flying-knee-and-punch sequence in the first round. The flash cut both ways: he gassed himself out in a decision loss to late-replacement Tristan Connelly, then was disqualified for an illegal knee against veteran Diego Sanchez in 2020. To his credit, he matured. He submitted Zelim Imadaev by rear-naked choke later in 2020, then began pairing his athleticism with discipline, outpointing knockout artist Khaos Williams and beating Niko Price on the UFC 264 card in 2021. He closed out his welterweight run with decision wins over Andre Fialho and former contender Santiago Ponzinibbio in 2022.

Middleweight resurgence

Moving up to 185 pounds revitalized Pereira. In October 2023 he stopped Andre Petroski by first-round TKO, then submitted Michał Oleksiejczuk with a rear-naked choke at UFC 299 and choked out Ihor Potieria with a standing guillotine at UFC 301, both in 2024. The momentum stalled against the division's grinders: he was stopped late by Anthony Hernandez in 2024, then dropped fights to Abus Magomedov and Kyle Daukaus in 2025. He steadied himself in February 2026 with a split-decision win over Zach Reese, and is booked to face Shara Magomedov.

Fighting style

Pereira is among the most unpredictable strikers in MMA, blending karate-derived movement, capoeira-flavored acrobatics and genuine knockout power into a chaotic but increasingly controlled attack. His 32-14 record carries a 63 percent finish rate, split almost evenly between his 11 knockouts and nine submissions – a reminder that beneath the showmanship sits a real grappler. His longtime weaknesses have been cardio and consistency: when opponents weather his early storm or drag him into the championship rounds, he can fade, as his five-round loss to Hernandez showed. At his best, though, few fighters can match his ability to end a night out of nowhere.

Career highlights

• Highlight-reel finisher — his flying-knee knockout of Danny Roberts on debut remains one of the UFC's most replayed finishes.
• Middleweight reinvention — reeled off finishes of Petroski, Oleksiejczuk and Potieria after moving up to 185 pounds.
• Two-discipline threat — a karate black belt with nine career submissions, proof his game runs far deeper than acrobatics.