We all know that Alex Pereira can crack, but some of us know it a bit more than others.
First and foremost, there’s the fighters that have actually taken his punches. Some don’t make it a round. Khalil Rountree Jr. made it four at UFC 307. And by the end of that fourth round, “War Horse” was taking some thunderous punches as his gas tank failed him and “Poatan” took over (watch the highlights here).
Another person with a unique perspective on how hard Pereira punches is referee Marc Goddard, who was up close and personal as the Brazilian light heavyweight champion lit Rountree up. He shared his thoughts on the fight with Joe Rogan, who discussed it on the pay-per-view broadcast after the main event.
“I was in the Octagon after the fight, and Marc Goddard came up to me,” Rogan said. “He said, ‘I’ve been doing this for 20 years, the way he hits people, the sound is like nothing I’ve ever heard before.’ He said, ‘It’s ungodly.’ That’s what he kept saying, he says it’s ungodly.”
Things were certainly getting ungodly in the fourth round as “Poatan” landed a loud jumping knee and pushed Rountree back against the cage, unloading punches that were splitting Khalil wide open. The title challenger walked away from the fight with a horrific cut above the eye and a bad split up his nose. He wouldn’t go down, though, until Pereira hit him with two thudding body shots and a final overhand to the side of the head.
Ungodly.
Goddard shared some separate fights following the bout, expressing his gratitude for getting to be a part of so much mixed martial arts (MMA) history.
“Salt Lake City – you were incredible! What an amazing event once again,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “The main event, congratulations to Alex but Khalil, wow! Unbelievable heart and determination and this fight embodied everything about this amazing sport. I’m fortunate beyond belief.”
“I have got to witness some of the greatest moments in MMA history from 6 feet away for the past 20 years,” he added in another tweet. “I am thankful beyond words. I owe this sport everything.”
It’s been a solid two week stretch for UFC fans as they went from a raucous crowd at the Accor Arena in Paris, France to this main event between Alex Pereira and Khalil Rountree Jr. which did indeed evoke the early days of the sport with a kickboxer versus muay thai match between two martial artists steeped in the traditions and respect of their styles. Marc Goddard feels it, and so do we.
Let’s see how the vibe holds up over the next few weeks back at the UFC Apex leading into UFC 308 on October 26th. Just the fact that these are some of the last events at the Apex before the venue is closed for renovations from November 9th (UFC Vegas 100) until mid-2025 only add to our excitement.