Alex Pereira opens as slight UFC 335 underdog

Former two-division titleholder Alex Pereira returns to the octagon on Dec. 12 in the UFC 335 co-main event. “Poatan” takes on No. 2 ranked and former interm title challenger Sergei Pavlovich in a five-round fight at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The fight promotion made the announcement during Saturday’s UFC 332 broadcast and oddsmakers quickly put out the betting lines. Pereira opened as a slight underdog to the Russian. BetOnline Sports & Casino set the odds at Pereira +105 and Pavlovich -120.

Pavlolvich (21-3) will enter the fight coming off a 39-second knockout win over Tallison Teixeira in May. He’s won three fights in a row and will be looking to extend the streak and earn a title shot.

Pereira relinquished his light heavyweight crown to move to the heavyweight division in his last outing in an effort to become the first three-division champion in UFC history. He was defeated by Ciryl Gane via second-round TKO on the UFC Freedom 250 fight card this past June. A win over Pavlovich could put the Brazilian back on a collision course with a championship bout.

UFC 335 is headlined by a BMF title fight between titleholder Charles Oliveira and former two-time featherweight title challenger Diego Lopes. It will be Lopes’ lightweight debut.