Summary
Poatan in a photo shoot. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram/alexpoatanpereira
This Monday (27), Alex Poatan , increasingly prominent in combat sports, reached a new level. The Brazilian is one of the cover stars of 'EA Sports UFC 6', the organization's official game. But, not everything is rosy, since a good portion of the athletes chosen to be the faces of the game end up falling into disgrace afterwards. Therefore, the renowned striker will have a double mission at UFC Casa Branca , an event on June 14th in Washington (USA), because, in addition to Ciryl Gane , he will also have to fight this curse in the most important fight of his career.
The commitment is very important for Poatan, because he seeks to become the first triple champion in UFC history. The Brazilian won the middleweight (up to 83,9 kg) belt in 2022, the light heavyweight (up to 93 kg) belt in 2023 and 2025, and in 2026 he dreams of the interim heavyweight (up to 120,2 kg) title. Hungry for greatness, the 38-year-old veteran will need to find a way to break the curse, which began to gain strength in 2014, right in the White House, one of the biggest stages possible.
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Remember the curses and fate of the fighters.
In the first game of the 'EA Sports UFC' franchise, Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson were on the cover. Interestingly, it was shortly after this period that the greatest and best fighter in MMA history began to have doping and legal problems. Meanwhile, the Swede's performance fluctuated, and he never became light heavyweight champion, losing six of the eight fights he competed in.
Ronda during a film shoot. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/RondaRousey
'EA Sports UFC 2' was released in 2016 and featured Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor on the cover . The American star, who lost her bantamweight title (up to 61,2 kg) after being knocked out by Holly Holm in 2015, suffered an even worse setback the following year against Amanda Nunes , being knocked out in 48 seconds. The Brazilian's beating was so severe that 'Rowdy' stopped fighting MMA and ventured into WWE. Meanwhile, the Irish icon was surprised by Nate Diaz , who hastily replaced Rafael dos Anjos , and was submitted in the second round.
McGregor during training. Photo: Reproduction/X/thenotoriousmma
In 2018, in the third game of the 'EA Sports UFC' franchise, McGregor was once again on the cover, this time as a standalone figure. However, the curse struck him again. The Irishman suffered at the hands of Khabib Nurmagomedov , the lightweight champion (up to 70,3 kg) and his greatest rival, and was ultimately submitted in the fourth round. The defeat was so harsh that 'Notorious' went through a period of intense hardship, becoming embroiled in numerous controversies, including assault cases and accusations of sexual abuse.
Masvidal makes weight and confirms fight in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC
Subsequently, Jorge Masvidal and Israel Adesanya shared the cover of 'EA Sports UFC 4', released in 2020. And while the American bad boy had an impeccable 2019, after gaining prominence in the game, he was dominated by champion Kamaru Usman in the welterweight title fight (up to 77,1 kg) and, since then, has not known what it is to win again, losing the other three fights he had, retiring in 2023.
The Nigerian, as the reigning middleweight champion, shone by knocking out Paulo Borrachinha in the second round, but was subsequently dominated by Jan Blachowicz when he ventured into the light heavyweight division. Adesanya dreamed of becoming a double champion, but he couldn't handle the Pole's strength well and suffered his first defeat in MMA.
Adesanya focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Press release/Facebook/UFC
The fifth and most recent edition of the 'EA Sports UFC' game was released in 2023 and featured Adesanya again, as well as Alexander Volkanovski and Valentina Shevchenko . Regarding the Nigerian, the game practically 'ended' his career. 'The Last Stylebencer' lost the belt to Poatan, regained it, and then lost the valuable object again when controlled by Sean Strickland . To make matters worse, the renowned striker hasn't known what it's like to win since. Currently, Israel has a streak of four losses.
Volkanovski focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC
In turn, the Australian went on to defend his featherweight title (up to 65,8 kg) against Yair Rodríguez. But then, trying his luck again at lightweight, Volkanovski was knocked out by Islam Makhachev in the first round of the rematch and, upon returning to the division, lost the title with a brutal knockout at the hands of Ilia Topuria in the second round.
Valentina focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC
Last but not least, the Kyrgyzstani fighter lost her flyweight title (up to 57 kg) after being submitted by Alexa Grasso , and in the rematch, she was also unlucky. In the second fight against her Mexican rival, Valentina's fight ended in a draw, meaning she saw Grasso defend her title.
And now?
It's true that superstition is scary, but since Poatan likes to take risks and is used to breaking records, there's no better fighter to escape the 'UFC cover curse' unscathed. Interestingly, Max Holloway , who is also on the cover of 'EA Sports UFC 6', fell even before the game's release. In March, the Hawaiian was dominated by Charles Oliveira and lost not only the rematch but also the 'BMF' belt.
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