Catchphrases are most prominent in the world of professional wrestling, and almost every wrestler seems to have one. However, catchphrases have also found their place in the combat sports world, particularly in MMA. UFC 313 headliner and light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira also has one viral catchphrase, and today we will be uncovering the meaning behind it.
Alex Pereira is a stone-cold killer inside the Octagon. A rather expressionless individual, fans rarely find him smiling. And to add to the intrigue, he’s known to use the word ‘Chama‘ a lot during conversations and in social media captions. What exactly does it signify?
What does ‘Chama’ mean in Brazilian slang?
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the word ‘Chama’ actually means ‘Flame’ or ‘Inspiration’ in Portuguese. However, Alex Pereira uses the word as a slang. The word for him indicates excitement and even encouragement. Pereira’s use of ‘Chama’ is similar to how people say ‘let’s go’ and ‘come on’ in English. It is a simple, yet catchy word for fans to chant whenever they are graced with the presence of ‘Poatan’, which was evident when he was in attendance at UFC 297.
Alex Pereira keeps having crowds of people chanting “Chama” outside of his hotels pic.twitter.com/dQD0jVAP0I
— 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙤 (@sinoUFC) February 11, 2024
Alex Pereira’s catchphrase was once the center of attention after his first light heavyweight title defense. UFC 300 helped him add another knockout to his name when he defeated former champion Jamahal Hill in the main event. He capped that win off with a celebration that social media influencer Khaby Lame would be proud of. Meanwhile, Hill, weeks after his defeat, would express on social media that he felt disrespected by the way Pereira celebrated when he was down and out. But guess what? ‘Sweet Dreams’ wasn’t as innocent as he sounds.
In the buildup to that fight, Jamahal Hill hurled a lot of trash talk at the champion, which would later come back to haunt him. But when Alex Pereira caught wind of Hill’s issues with his celebration, he would simply give the former champion a taste of his own medicine. “You reap what you sow, chama,” Pereira responded to ‘Sweet Dreams’. But his fights apart, Pereira also gained fans because of his antics, leading the phrase ‘Chama’ to get even more popular.
Alex Pereira’s famous ‘Chama’ moments
Alex Pereira traveled to Canada to support Sean Strickland in his fight against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297, and when the fans saw him they were excited to see him attend the press conference. But when he attended a fan meet-up event, they couldn’t help but chant ‘Chama’ as loud as they could. Despite being in the UFC for only a few years, Alex Pereira has become quite the fan favorite.
‘Poatan’ is also very active on social media—whether it’s posting on X and taking jibes at rivals or creating skits with his mentor Glover Teixeira and influencers like Nina Marie Daniele. One of the most memorable was when he rode a rollercoaster and sat there with an expressionless face—true to form—while his sons and ex-fiancee Merle Christine seemed to be shouting during the ride.
Back to the fight this weekend, Alex Pereira would hope to keep his winning momentum going with a win on March 8th over Magomed Ankalaev. It’s his third title defense in under 6 months and fans would hope to see yet another knockout win for the man with ‘hands of stone’. Who do you have winning at UFC 313?
The post What Does Alex Pereira’s Catchphrase ‘Chama’ Mean? All About the UFC Champ’s Viral Saying appeared first on EssentiallySports.
