Alex Pereira's Quest for a Rematch with Ciryl Gane at Madison Square Garden
Alex Pereira knows exactly where he wants to write his next chapter: under the lights of Madison Square Garden, across the cage from Ciryl Gane.
The former two-division UFC champion has never been shy about chasing history, and he’s not slowing down now. Beaten by Gane in June at UFC Freedom 250 in an interim heavyweight title fight, Pereira has gone public with his demand for a rematch — and he wants it on one of the sport’s biggest stages, at UFC 334 in New York on November 14.
Pereira’s MSG Mission
Speaking to UFC Brasil, Pereira laid out his plan with typical bluntness. He wants Gane again. He wants the interim belt back in play. And he wants to chase an unprecedented third UFC title.
“I think that’s the fight that makes sense. I really want it to work out, I want to win that third belt. I think I’ve done a lot of things in the UFC, and I think I deserve to have those options. I’d come back at Madison Square Garden, me and Ciryl Gane. If it were up to me, that’s what I’d choose,” Pereira said.
For a man who has already conquered middleweight and light heavyweight, the idea of walking into MSG with a chance to add heavyweight gold — even interim gold — fits neatly into the grand arc of his career. The Garden has long been a cathedral for combat sports, and Pereira clearly sees it as the right backdrop for another tilt at history.
A Complicated Rematch
On paper, the UFC doesn’t usually rush back to a fighter who was finished in an interim title bout and drop him straight into a second shot. Gane stopped Pereira in June to claim the interim belt and secure a unification fight with reigning heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.
But the heavyweight picture is stuck.
Aspinall remains sidelined with injury, and there is no clear timetable for his return. The division cannot afford to sit idle while the champion recovers, especially with a marketable name like Pereira ready to jump back in.
That’s where this rematch gains traction. The first fight didn’t end quietly. Gane hurt Pereira with blows that included illegal shots to the back of the head, and the finish came soon after. The controversy lingered. It didn’t overturn the result, but it left a cloud over what should have been a definitive coronation for the Frenchman.
The combination of a disputed ending, an injured champion, and a global star hunting a third belt gives the UFC something rare at heavyweight: a ready-made storyline that sells itself.
The question now is simple, and it won’t go away until the promotion answers it: with Tom Aspinall stuck on the sidelines and the Garden date looming, does the UFC hand Alex Pereira exactly what he wants — or let the most ambitious chase in the sport cool on the shelf?
