Borralho Reveals Pereira Exchange After Booking UFC 334 Clash
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Caio Borralho sent a text to Alex Pereira once he learned the UFC had matched him against one of the heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight champion's teammates.
The middleweight contender faces Yousri Belgaroui on Saturday's UFC 334 card at Madison Square Garden, a pairing that places Pereira in Belgaroui's corner. Borralho and Pereira share training history from sessions at The Fighting Nerds gym in Sao Paulo and camps stateside. Belgaroui joined Pereira's group at Glover Teixeira's facility in Danbury after crossing over from GLORY kickboxing.
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The Brazilian middleweight reached out once the booking was official. "After the fight, everything goes back to normal," Borralho told MMA Fighting, explaining he asked Pereira to pause their joint training until after the New York event. The message stressed mutual respect despite the temporary opposition.
Shared Training Sessions Not A Concern For Borralho
Borralho downplayed any edge Belgaroui might gain from Pereira's familiarity with his style. The two have worked striking and grappling drills in previous camps, but Borralho argued the knockout artist is experienced enough not to lean on that. Both Pereira and Teixeira recognize the grappling mismatch, he said.
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The Fighting Nerds representative carries an 8-1 UFC record following his win over Reinier de Ridder. Belgaroui has stopped all three opponents since entering the promotion through the Contender Series in September 2024, knocking out Azamat Bekoev, Mansur Abdul-Malik and Djorden Santos in succession. Borralho admitted his first thought was that the matchup felt like a lateral move for someone chasing a title shot, but he accepted immediately after asking whether higher-ranked opponents were available.
He dismissed suggestions that wrestling should be his primary tool against the striker. Borralho cited his exchanges with Michal Oleksiejczuk, Jared Cannonier and Nassourdine Imavov as proof he can hang standing. The takedown threat itself will disrupt Belgaroui's rhythm, Borralho said, and his complete game makes this dangerous for both fighters. UFC 334 takes place Saturday in New York.
Photo by Nolan Kent on Unsplash
Original reporting:
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