7:47 AM ET
Jeff WagenheimESPN
BETHEL, Conn. -- "It's hard here," says Alex Pereira. He is shirtless and his torso is covered with sweat arsenic helium sits connected a seat successful beforehand of an unfastened window, a invited autumn breeze cooling disconnected the gym. "It's precise difficult."
Pereira is not complaining. It's a small challenging to get afloat wrong his words, due to the fact that helium is speaking successful Portuguese and his words are past translated by the shirtless, sweaty grooming spouse sitting beside him, erstwhile UFC airy heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira.
But it's casual to prime up connected the code of Pereira's voice. It is 1 of contentment, mixed with a steadfast purposefulness. The consciousness of intent is what 1 would expect from a antheral preparing for the biggest combat of his beingness connected the biggest stage. On Saturday, wrong Madison Square Garden successful New York City, Pereira volition situation UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya successful the main lawsuit of UFC 281 (ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET). His intent for that nighttime is arsenic wide arsenic the bluish entity extracurricular the model close down him.
The contentment, though? Pereira feels astatine bid successful this gym successful occidental Connecticut due to the fact that of the assemblage helium has recovered here. The connectedness among those who bid astatine Teixeira MMA & Fitness goes heavy capable to get gritty. The workouts propulsion beyond self-imposed limitations, yet each who measurement connected the mat are successful it together, nestled wrong a cocoon of information and support. The gym is, aft all, a household project.
Teixeira opened the installation 8 years agone with his wife, Ingrid, who grew up successful the neighboring municipality of Danbury, and the household vibe embraces everyone who walks done the door. In the lawsuit of Pereira, who, similar Teixeira, is simply a autochthonal of Brazil, the kinship wrong the gym is literal. His sister Aline, who precocious signed to marque her pro MMA debut, besides trains here.
"We're a household here, a bully vibe, precise friendly," Teixeira says. "But similar Alex said, it is difficult. Hard enactment each day. It's not for everyone, but Alex showed helium belonged present the archetypal clip helium came."
That was successful the summertime of 2020, erstwhile Teixeira brought successful Pereira to assistance with his grooming for a combat against Thiago Santos. It was a unsafe matchup with precocious stakes. Teixeira was connected a four-fight winning streak and was connected the cusp of a rubric changeable adjacent portion connected the incorrect broadside of property 40. But first, helium had to get past the heavy-hitting striker known arsenic "Marreta," which is Portuguese for "Sledgehammer." So Team Teixeira enlisted the assistance of a renowned powerfulness puncher.
Pereira was a kickboxing satellite champion astatine the time, the middleweight titlist successful Glory, the sport's astir salient combat organization. Of Pereira's 33 kickboxing victories, 21 had travel by knockout. Among them was a left-hook KO of Adesanya successful 2017.
"He hits truthful hard," Teixeira recalls of his archetypal sparring league with Pereira. "I've trained with heavyweights, and nary 1 has powerfulness similar Alex."
Teixeira's caput boxing trainer, Fernely Feliz, remembers that archetypal gym league well. Even though Pereira did not person the carnal burliness of Teixeira and had yet to polish the trade of MMA, it instantly became wide to Feliz that Pereira had the skills and toughness to spell with that lights-out near hook of his. "First clip I saw him bid with us, I told Glover, 'Keep an oculus connected this guy,'" Feliz says. "This feline is simply a existent fighter."
It turns retired the admiration was mutual. Pereira was astatine a constituent successful his vocation wherever MMA was beckoning. He'd taken 3 fights successful that athletics successful 2015 and 2016 successful Brazil, and aft losing his debut by submission -- nary astonishment for a kickboxing specializer -- helium had knocked retired his adjacent 2 opponents. But past helium went backmost to kickboxing, wherever helium was connected a title track.
Before 2017 was over, Pereira would ain the Glory middleweight belt. Within 2 years, helium would besides adhd an interim airy heavyweight belt. And successful 2021, helium unified the airy heavyweight title, becoming the archetypal Glory champ to reign simultaneously successful 2 value classes.
Nonetheless, MMA became progressively enticing for Pereira arsenic the sport's illustration grew and Adesanya emerged arsenic 1 of its grandest stars. When the erstwhile kickboxer, whom Pereira had defeated not once, but twice, became UFC champ successful 2019, a YouTube video of "The Last Stylebender" being KO'd by Pereira astatine Glory of Heroes 7 successful the Brazilian's hometown of Sao Paulo was gaining monolithic attention. (Today, it has 14 cardinal views.)
While grooming successful Bethel with Teixeira and his squad successful the autumn of 2020, Pereira signed a MMA declaration with the Texas-based Legacy Fighting Alliance, the aforesaid enactment that recently signed his sister, who besides came from Glory kickboxing. Alex's LFA debut, a first-round knockout triumph that November, besides turned retired to beryllium his swan opus with the promotion. The UFC swooped successful the pursuing September to bring connected the antheral who had doubly defeated its 185-pound champion.
Teixeira wasted nary clip successful talking up a 3rd gathering with Adesanya. Pereira had not adjacent made his Octagon debut yet, and his person and grooming spouse was connected a Brazilian podcast announcing to the champ, "Daddy's successful the UFC."
After scoring knockouts successful his archetypal 3 UFC appearances, Pereira is poised for his large moment. It is simply a daunting situation for anyone to measurement successful with Adesanya, who is No. 2 successful ESPN's pound-for-pound men's rankings. That is particularly truthful for a combatant with conscionable 7 MMA bouts. But Pereira exudes confidence, partially due to the fact that of his kickboxing occurrence against Adesanya and this mounting wherever helium has been preparing for the rubric fight.
"This is hardcore training," Pereira says, catching his enactment pursuing a greeting workout. "When I came here, it was not casual for me. But I said, 'I've got to stay.' Now I emotion it. I americium astatine a level successful MMA wherever I tin combat anyone."
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2:47
Alex Pereira explains however the transportation to his indigenous roots helps consciousness connected to a higher purpose.
A ample framework connected the partition astatine Teixeira MMA & Fitness displays the gloves and shorts that Teixeira wore connected Oct. 30, 2021, astatine UFC 271, on with a photograph of him choking retired Jan Blachowicz that nighttime to become airy heavyweight champion. Nearly a twelvemonth anterior to that, Teixeira had made the astir of Pereira's grooming assistance and earned the rubric changeable by submitting Santos. Teixeira's reign would beryllium short-lived, though, arsenic helium was dethroned successful June by Jiri Prochazka.
On this time the gym is abuzz, however, due to the fact that not conscionable Pereira, but besides Teixeira is present preparing for a rubric bout, caller disconnected the announcement that Prochazka-Teixeira 2 volition instrumentality spot connected Dec. 10 astatine UFC 282. Teixeira takes this crook of events -- 2 of the 8 UFC men's championships being wrong scope of this tiny gym -- arsenic an endorsement of what helium and his squad person built.
"We person a champion mentality," Teixeira says. "Only the existent ones travel here."
Pereira aside, respective different fighters successful the gym vie successful the UFC oregon Bellator, among them airy heavyweight Dominick Reyes, who faces Ryan Spann connected Saturday. "I came present to enactment with the coach, Fernely Feliz," says Reyes, who has been trying to find his mode retired of a three-fight losing streak. "He is genuinely funny successful helping maine get backmost connected track."
When Reyes arrived from California successful aboriginal August, helium stayed for a week astatine Feliz's house. "They treated maine similar family," helium says.
That vibe permeates the Teixeira gym, which is tucked adjacent to a aesculapian instrumentality store successful a tiny portion promenade disconnected the interstate. Inside, the ample caged-in mat is filled with mixed martial artists of assorted accomplishment levels, from pros preparing for rubric fights to earthy amateurs drilling basal techniques. Outside the cage, a canine owned by 1 of the coaches lies connected a seat adjacent a window, staring extracurricular astatine the entranceway to the doggy time attraction adjacent door.
Brazilian euphony plays during shadiness boxing, past hip-hop. Then the euphony goes soundless arsenic the pros determination to 1 broadside of the cage for immoderate superior sparring. They spell hard, yet the grooming partners someway negociate to support each different safe. And erstwhile the league is over, everyone sits unneurotic connected the mat, listening to a fewer words from the coaches. Words of inspiration. Words of community.
The consciousness of assemblage present extends beyond these gym walls. Hanging adjacent the memorabilia from Teixeira's UFC title triumph are different framed symbols of what this spot means to the area. There are a brace of Teixeira's "American Dream Leadership Award" certificates, each signed by a antithetic Connecticut senator. There's the gym's rank certificate from the Danbury Chamber of Commerce, wherever Ingrid Teixeira erstwhile worked. There's the cardinal to the metropolis of Danbury, which the politician awarded to Teixeira past twelvemonth "in designation of your UFC Championship triumph and successful appreciation of your contributions to the city."
Teixeira archetypal moved to the Danbury country successful 1999 to find work, arriving from Brazil with the cognition that determination were tons of his countrymen surviving here, including immoderate friends and family. He met Ingrid successful a gym, and aft helium began grooming successful MMA, the mates moved to California, wherever Teixeira became a Chuck Liddell grooming spouse nether manager John Hackleman. But problems with his greenish paper necessitated a instrumentality to Brazil, and arsenic Teixeira's clip retired of the state grew longer, his woman moved backmost to Connecticut. It took respective years for Teixeira's visa presumption to beryllium cleared up. When helium yet was escaped to question backmost to the United States, helium joined Ingrid successful Connecticut, wherever they've been ever since.
"I fell successful emotion with this area," Teixeira says. "The nature, the changes of season. The leaves successful fall, adjacent the wintertime and the snow. We don't person 4 seasons successful Brazil. It's priceless."
For years during his UFC career, Teixeira would question to California oregon Florida for combat camps. But successful 2014, the mates opened a gym successful Danbury, "and I said, 'I'm not going to bash my campy anyplace else,'" helium says. "If I'm going to beryllium a champion, I'm going to get determination by grooming close here."
Even aft Glover and Ingrid moved the gym cognition into this larger abstraction successful neighboring Bethel, Teixeira MMA & Fitness has remained a vibrant portion of the section community. That is what helium has brought Alex Pereira into. And Pereira appreciates what helium present has.
"I emotion that the gym is successful a tiny municipality with tons of Brazilians," Pereira says. "I americium blessed that I americium here."
He pauses to crook toward the model and constituent outside. It's conscionable past highest foliage successful this portion of New England, but the colorful trees inactive overgarment a beauteous scenery picture.
"The quality here!" Pereira says. "I similar to beryllium surrounded by this, barbecuing with friends."
Teixeira finishes translating Pereira's words into English, past faces his friend. A grin grows wide crossed his look arsenic helium grabs Pereira successful a playful headlock. "You amended not accidental thing atrocious astir Connecticut!" Teixeira says.
Then it's Teixeira's crook to look around, but successful his case, the regard is contained wrong the gym. Fighters are scattered around, packing up cogwheel aft different day's hard workout. Teixeira takes a heavy breath. "Same clip tomorrow," helium says. "If you physique it, they volition come."
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