Former UFC Middleweight Champion, Alex Pereira, found himself at the center of an unexpected controversy during a routine trip to Walmart. The renowned fighter, who recently made waves in his bouts against Israel Adesanya, was tailed by a security staff member, much to his surprise.
Pereira, a former two-division GLORY kickboxing champion, gained recognition for his thrilling encounters with Adesanya in the past year. However, it seems that his intimidating appearance may have prompted the Walmart security staff to keep a close eye on him as he perused the store shelves.
Adesanya Comments on Alex Pereira’s Encounter with Suspicious Walmart Employee
The incident was captured on video and shared on Pereira’s Instagram stories, quickly going viral on Twitter.
Lol, I wish the guy tried Alex. They follow me in shops for different reasons now. Still, yuck this! https://t.co/0cB2TX8mSE
— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) June 26, 2023
Despite the situation, Pereira remained unfazed. Known for his composed demeanor, he has consistently shown a lack of animosity outside the octagon, even when Adesanya taunted his son after their last fight. In fact, Pereira’s chance encounter with Adesanya at an airport further demonstrated his cool and polite nature.
The Walmart employee should consider themselves fortunate that they didn’t mistakenly target someone like Mike Perry or Nate Diaz, who might have reacted differently to such profiling.
Although Pereira and Adesanya have faced each other twice in the UFC, with one win each, it seems that a third fight between them is not currently in the works. Pereira is gearing up for his debut in the light heavyweight division against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 291 on July 29, 2023. As for Adesanya, his next title defense is still to be officially scheduled, but it looks like a showdown could be on the cards at UFC 293 in Australia on September 10, 2023.
The MMA community on Twitter was buzzing with reactions to Pereira’s video, and people had a lot to say about the Walmart employee’s behavior. Many questioned why the employee decided to tail Pereira, even though he was aware that he was being recorded. Thankfully, things didn’t spiral out of control, and both Pereira and the employee were able to handle the situation calmly.
