Alex Pereira and Artem Vakhitov may be fierce rivals when it comes to combat sports, but there’s nothing but respect between them outside the ring. On Tuesday night, Vakhitov scored a first-round knockout on Contender Series but UFC CEO Dana White was on the fence about whether or not to sign him to a contract.

In a surprising twist, UFC champ Alex Pereira showed up to Dana White’s Contender Series and convinced White to sign rival Artem Vakhitov.