UFC 307: Alex Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree Head-to-Toe Breakdown

This Saturday's UFC 307 card in Salt Lake City will be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Alex Pereira and challenger Khalil Rountree Jr.

Not everybody is thrilled about the fight.

While the No. 8 Rountree is riding five straight wins, including a cataclysmic knockout of former title challenger Anthony Smith in his last appearance, rankings purists believe the next crack at Pereira should have gone to surging No. 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev.

Those people are right.

They also don't know how to have fun.

Pereira vs. Rountree will be one of the most exciting striking matchups in recent UFC history. The pair have a combined 18 knockout wins—nine apiece—in 31 MMA fights. That's no surprise, given Pereira's status as a former two-division kickboxing champion, Rountree's long-term efforts to hone his Muay Thai skill among the masters in Thailand, and the innate, one-punch stopping power they both possess.

The likelihood of this fight lasting more than a few rounds—let alone all five—is slim. All signs point to Pereira or Rountree taking a quick nap under the Delta Center's Jumbotron, and while the oddsmakers will tell you the champ is more likely to be the man left standing, matchups like this one are essentially always a coin-flip.

How the coin lands remains to be seen.

How Pereira vs. Rountree Came Together

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Khalil Rountree Jr. reacts after his knockout against Anthony Smith

Anyone who has spent a significant amount of time in Thailand knows it can be a difficult place to leave behind. For Khalil Rountree, the pull of "The Land of Smiles" was so great that he nearly gave up on his UFC career to build a life there.

"[My life] could have gone in a different direction," Rountree told B/R ahead of his UFC 307 title fight. "I was living in Thailand. I loved it. I wanted to spend the rest of my life there. I wanted to fight Muay Thai in the stadiums. It burned inside of me. I really wanted it, but I was still under contract with the UFC so I wouldn't have been able to do that.

"After Covid happened, I was still in Thailand, and I had to fight, so there was a fork in the road. I had to make a decision: Either I continue to fight for the UFC or I give everything up and stay in Thailand. The decision was, if I'm going to [stay with the UFC], I'm going to fully commit to becoming a champion. If I have to leave this place that I love, then I'm going to go back to the USA and focus on one thing, and one thing only, and that's becoming champion."

Several years and five impressive wins later, Rountree is closer than ever to becoming a champion and justifying his decision to delay his move to the warmth of Southeast Asia.

He admits that he didn't expect to be in this position so soon. He, like many fans, expected the next crack at Pereira to go to No. 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev.

"I was just as surprised as everybody else," he said. "I didn't see it coming, but when the phone call came, I answered, and like I said, I was surprised. My jaw dropped, my heart skipped a beat, but I was excited."

Pereira was also surprised by the name on his latest bout offer, but has repeatedly claimed he was willing to fight Ankalaev, and is now directing anybody who is disappointed that he's fighting Rountree instead to take it up with UFC brass.

"I was surprised too, but it's not in my control," the stone-faced Brazilian said in his own interview with B/R. "I don't own the MMA event. Maybe people should go and ask Dana White about it."

Breaking Down the Striking

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Alex Pereira knocks out Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303.

Alex Pereira is a two-division UFC champion, having briefly held the middleweight title before taking the throne up at light heavyweight. Winning belts in two divisions is a massive accomplishment under any circumstances, but it's particularly impressive in the Brazilian's case, because he only debuted with the promotion in November 2021.

When Rountree was living in Thailand, contemplating retiring from MMA, Pereira was still competing in the Glory kickboxing ring, with just a handful of MMA bouts to his name.

Even he has difficulty believing everything he's accomplished in the time since his final kickboxing match.

"Sometimes, yes, it's hard to believe," the former kickboxing champ said. "Sometimes it's not. Sometimes I think of all the hard work that I've put in, and everything that I've done, and I have to have this type of success."

Most of Pereira's success in the UFC is thanks to the destructive striking skill he developed over the course of his kickboxing career. There are only a few fighters on the UFC roster on his level on the feet. Rountree may be one of them, but the champ was reluctant to give his challenger too much credit.

"I can put him ahead of some guys who I've [faced] before," he said. "I don't know where he'd be on the list, but for sure he's a dangerous striker. Every fighter has a different style."

Rountree, who has remarkably never shot for a takedown in 15 UFC fights, has a different view of things.

By his estimation, he and Pereira are evenly matched on the feet.

"Without hyping myself, at the very bare minimum, [we're] equal," he said.

It's easy to understand why Rountree is so confident in his diligently honed Muay Thai striking. He's delivered some very impressive knockouts in the Octagon, none more so than his 2019 one-hitter-quitter against another kickboxing legend in Gokhan Saki.

Ahead of UFC 307, Rountree's supporters have been making frequent reference to his win over Saki. He's knocked a world-class kickboxer out before, they'll tell you, and he can do it again.

In Rountree's head, however, beating Saki is not a big confidence booster—at least, not in the way you'd expect.

"I try not to look back at what I've done and compare it to this fight or use it as fuel," he said. "Every fighter is different. Gokhan Saki is a different fighter [than Pereira]. As great as he is, and the things he's done, it's a different body, it's a different brain, it's a different strategy. I don't really compare the two.

"What I can say that when I fought Gokhan Saki, I wasn't the same fighter that I am today. I wasn't as skilled, I don't think I worked as hard as I work now. Knowing that alone, that gives me confidence—knowing that I was a kid when I fought Gokhan Saki."

Pereira agrees that Rountree's win over Saki has little bearing on their UFC 307 fight. He found it impressive, to be sure, but pointed to Rountree's 2022 split-decision win over another kickboxer in Dustin Jacoby as a counterpoint.

"Gokhan Saki is a super dangerous striker," he said. "If you go back in the day in kickboxing, and you ask me who I'd rather fight between Gokhan Saki and Dustin Jacoby, I'd choose Dustin Jacoby. You see how Dustin Jacoby went with Khalil. Yes, Khalil beat Gokhan Saki the way that he did, but I watched that fight with Dustin Jacoby the other day, and I think Dustin won that fight."

What's Next for the Winner?

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Khalil Rountree Jr. punches Anthony Smith.

The critics of UFC 307's main event are surely hoping that, whether Pereira or Rountree comes out on top, No. 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev will be next in line for a title shot—assuming he beats Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308 on Oct. 26.

That's most likely the way things will play out, but it's by no means a certainty.

Pereira is open to fighting Ankalaev, but having become one of the most successful and popular fighters in all of combat sports, believes he is in position for many other possibilities.

He has previously expressed interest in moving up to heavyweight, or dropping back down to middleweight to challenge champ Dricus Du Plessis for the belt. He is also interested in leveraging his newfound popularity to set up some big opportunities in the boxing ring, where the paydays tend to be much higher.

"I have so many possibilities it's hard to name just one [I want]," Pereira said. "There's heavyweight, there's middleweight. One interesting one is that Dana [White] mentioned he might be going into boxing promotion.

"I have good boxing—not only for MMA but for professional boxing too. I've sparred many big names in boxing, and I think if you ask any of these boxers that I've trained with, they're going to say it was super high-level, they're going to say it was good. Maybe that's a place for me there."

Rountree is also open to fighting Ankalaev, but if he takes the belt from Pereira, the UFC may go another route: Given the Brazilian's popularity, they may give him an immediate rematch if he loses the belt.

The challenger would have no objections if that's what the UFC wanted.

"It depends how it goes, but if it has to happen again, so be it," he said of a potential Pereira rematch. "I'm not looking that far ahead, I've just got this one in mind, but if it has to happen again, it'll happen again, and it'll be another one that's for the fans.

"Holding the belt, to me, it seems like such an honour and a privilege. In a perfect world, I defend the belt as many times as I can.

"Once this fight is over, I can open up the next chapter."

And Still or And New?

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Alex Pereira of Brazil reacts to his victory over Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303

Between visits to the barber, Alex Pereira sports a head of thick, dark hair. You wouldn't know it if you bumped into him during one of his fight weeks.

While the champ wouldn't call it a ritual, per se, he almost always shaves his head before his fights.

The reason? He's one of the most dangerous fighters on earth, and he likes to look the part.

"It's important for me because I like to look a bit more serious, and more composed," he said.

Pereira's fans will be relieved to learn he's dialled in on his imminent fight with Rountree. Not only is it a favorable matchup for him, but it's also his fourth fight in the last calendar year after vicious knockouts of former champs Jiri Prochazka (twice) and Jamahal Hill.

It wouldn't be surprising if he was taking the matchup a bit lightly. It wouldn't be surprising if he was burning out.

Not so, he says.

He's as motivated as ever, and confident he will get his hand raised on Saturday.

"I still like to work hard, and my body's not too hurt so I'm able to work hard," he said. "I think what motivates me now is just keeping doing title defenses and doing more and more.

"I feel good. I feel prepared. It's hard to say how I'm going to win, but I will leave with the win."

Rountree is also confident he'll leave Salt Lake City with the light heavyweight belt in his luggage.

"This is the pinnacle. This is the peak of the mountain. This is the moment that everybody trains and fights for," he said. "I just see myself winning. I just see myself victorious. That's the best way I can put it. Whether it's Round 2 or Round 5, I'm prepared. I signed up for a five-round fight, so if that means I've got to win five rounds in a row, OK. No matter what, my focus is on being victorious."

As for how it will feel to have the belt wrapped around his waist in the Octagon after nearly retiring several years ago, he is expecting a flood of memories and emotions.

"It's going to be exhilarating," he said. "I can imagine myself having flashing backs of the entire journey. You know how people in movies, their life flashes before their eyes? I can just imagine that as this belt's getting wrapped around my waist—just this flurry of visions from the past building to this moment."