ULTIMATE TURNAROUND
Inside the inspirational story of Alex Pereira, from working in rundown tyre shop and alcoholism to UFC 300 headliner
The man UFC 300 is built around came from the humblest of beginnings
ALEX PEREIRA tops the bill of one of the biggest cards in mixed martial arts history this weekend.
The Brazilian makes the first defence of his light-heavyweight title early on Saturday morning in the showpiece bout of UFC 300.
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Pereira's headlining of the Sin City extravaganza caps a remarkable journey to superstardom in MMA's top promotion, which he's achieved in only SEVEN fights.
And it's also the culmination of an incredible journey, which has been filled with world titles galore, from the depths of poverty and addiction for the Brazilian.
Pereira left school aged 12 with the most basic of qualifications, a decision that looked set to keep him in the life of poverty he'd already endured.
He picked up a job in a tyre shop to help make ends meet for his family, who resided in the greater district of Sao Paulo.
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But unbeknown to him, his workplace would put him on the path to self-destruction.
Pereira would observe his co-workers drink iced cachacas, a Brazilian sugarcane spirit, throughout the day - a practice he initially declined to partake in.
He would, however, eventually succumb to their influence and become addicted to booze.
His addiction got so bad that by the time he was 16, he was drinking a LITRE of the stuff a day and took payments for his work in the form of drinks.
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He admitted: "At that time when I was really lost, I used to drink almost one litre [of alcohol] a day.
"I had… kind of a ritual. Until 12pm, I used to drink 3 cachacas.
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"At 10am, at 11am and another one at noon… I had no financial condition. I liked beer, but damn, I had no money."
Pereira would spend the next five years trapped in the midst of the booze-filled cycle until he was introduced to kickboxing in 2009.
"I drank like crazy," Pereira said. "That's when I thought sport would save me.
"I can't play football. But I knew I had fighting talent and I chose martial arts."
Kickboxing well and truly changed Pereira's life, with 'Poatan' getting himself in shape and eventually turning professional.
But he was still battling his addiction during the first four years of his pro career.
Recalling the battle with former UFC heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum, he said: "It's been four years I've been struggling [to break free from alcohol].
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"If I don't stop, I'm nothing. I'll never drink anything again.
"I've never used drugs and my problem is drinking. I drink every day. I drink almost a litre a day."
It took Pereira four attempts to get sober. But get sober he did.
"It was an addiction," he said. "We’re in that moment, drinking, and we say, 'I’ll stop when I want to.'
"I had that in my mind. I decided to stop, it was time to stop.
"But I couldn’t, and that’s when I realised it was ugly."
Pereira's permanent ditching of the booze would put him on the path to iconic combat sports status.
The 36-year-old became the first man in GLORY - kickboxing's premier organisation - to hold two titles simultaneously after scooping their middle and light-heavyweight titles.
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He would replicate the feat in the UFC a mere two years after joining mixed martial arts' top promotion.
Pereira claimed the organisation's middleweight title in November 2022 with a shock stoppage of long-time rival Israel Adesanya at Madison Square Garden.
He'd become the fastest two-division champion in UFC history 12 months later when he knocked out Jiri Prochazka to claim the vacant light-heavyweight title.
And Pereira will be the first to admit he owes all his success to winning the biggest fight of his life.
"Until recently, I was kind of afraid, ashamed," he admitted. "But today, I see the need for it.
"Because, how many people are suffering from alcohol or drug problems? Not only directly, but also the family.
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"So today, people have the opportunity to know where they can be saved.
"In sports. It doesn't matter if it's kickboxing, MMA, soccer, or whatever, you know?"
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