There were reports about a possible fight between Michel Pereira and Roman Dolidze at UFC Fight Night in Louisville, Ky., but it seems things are not as clear-cut.
Following his impressive 54-second victory at UFC 301, Pereira (31-11 MMA, 9-2 UFC) was rumored to be facing Dolidze (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in a middleweight bout.
However, Pereira took to social media to clarify that he did not agree to the fight because Dolidze is his training partner at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas.
In a statement in Portuguese, Pereira said, “I did not accept that fight. He trains with me every day at UFC P.I. and Xtreme Couture. He accepted, but I did not. It’s not the right time for me to fight him. If he accepted, that’s his problem. I would need to find another gym to train at if I were to fight him.”
After his recent win at UFC 301 in Rio de Janeiro, Pereira, from Brazil, is uncertain about his next move despite the possibility of a one-month turnaround, given his impressive eight-fight winning streak.
On the other hand, Dolidze appeared willing to fight Pereira despite their training relationship, stating that Pereira had agreed to fight on June 8 and had signed the contract accordingly.
Dolidze has faced challenges in staying active, with the canceled bout against Pereira being the latest addition to his list of scrapped matchups since November.
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