Henry Cejudo isn't ready to hand Alex Pereira the "Greatest of All Time" crown just yet — even if "Poatan" makes UFC history this summer.
The former two-division champion weighed in on Pereira's legacy during the latest episode of the Pound 4 Pound podcast alongside Kamaru Usman. The discussion centered around a fan question: how much would Pereira's stock rise if he captures an interim heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane at UFC White House on June 14?
Pereira, who has already held gold at middleweight (185 pounds) and light heavyweight (205 pounds), is chasing a feat no UFC fighter has ever achieved — winning a championship in three different weight classes. No interim, no asterisk. Just history.
Cejudo acknowledged that pulling off this three-division sweep, followed by a win over undisputed champion Tom Aspinall, would elevate Pereira into elite company. But top of the mountain? Not so fast.
"He's in the top 5 greatest of all time," Cejudo said.
When Usman pressed him on why becoming a "champ-champ-champ" wouldn't automatically make Pereira No. 1, Cejudo pointed to the path Pereira took to get there.
"No, because there's a big difference — he was kind of pushed to the title at 185. He was pushed to the title at light heavyweight. And now he's being pushed to the title," Cejudo explained. "It's different when you actually run through the weight class like you did, like Jon Jones did. That is f*cking hard. Now if you're able to do that, go up and run through the next one, go up and run through that next one — that's a big difference. I'm not hating, I'm just telling the truth."
Cejudo also argued that recency bias has pushed legends like Georges St-Pierre, Jon Jones, B.J. Penn, Randy Couture, and Daniel Cormier out of their rightful spots on the all-time greats list, making room for newer champions with arguably thinner résumés.
Usman, however, sees it differently. For him, Pereira setting a precedent no one else has ever touched demands consideration for the No. 1 spot.
"I think Alex Pereira puts himself in rarified air if this man is able to go out there and be the first-ever," Usman said.