Nina Marie-Daniele appears to have played matchmaker for Alex Pereira’s potential next fight. There has been recent speculation that Pereira, the former UFC middleweight champion and current UFC light heavyweight champion, could make a comeback at UFC 300 on April 13, 2024. However, the UFC has not yet announced who Pereira will defend his light heavyweight title against, nor has it given any official confirmation regarding his rumored return to UFC 300.
After Pereira’s victorious performance against Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 in November 2023, he called out his longtime kickboxing and MMA rival, Israel Adesanya. Pereira had become the UFC middleweight champion by defeating Adesanya in November 2022, but lost the title in their April 2023 rematch. Adesanya later lost the middleweight title to Sean Strickland in September 2023 and announced he would be taking an extended break from MMA competition. However, Adesanya has recently hinted at a possible return to the sport.
In an Instagram post by ESPN MMA, Pereira commented on the possibility of a third MMA encounter with Adesanya. He claimed to have respectfully offered Adesanya a shot at his light heavyweight belt following his win, but Adesanya has responded with disrespect. Pereira stated, “I wanted to give him the chance, and I saw he was not giving me any respect for [my callout]…If he comes up, nice; if he doesn’t, it doesn’t matter.”
UFC interviewer and social media influencer, Nina-Marie Daniele, suggested in the comments section of the Instagram post that Pereira defend his light heavyweight title against Adesanya at UFC 300. She wrote, “Poatan vs. Izzy for LHW title at UFC 300! Book it!” Marie-Daniele has been widely recognized for her humorous and friendly interview style since 2022, becoming one of the most well-known UFC interviewers today.
Marie-Daniele and Pereira have had several amusing interactions throughout 2022 and 2023. In a video posted to Instagram in November 2022, Pereira is seen attempting a vocal impression of the anime character Pikachu after being gifted a Pikachu stuffed toy and denim jacket by Marie-Daniele.
