"I don't want to go back to the tire shop": understand Poatan's phrase that became a meme
If you've been through social media in the last few days, you've probably come across videos of fans saying, through tears and jokingly: "I don't want to go back to the tire shop." The phrase, which took over the world of football during the final stretch of the 2026 World Cup, was born far from the pitch and has its origins in a real story of overcoming lived by Alex "Poatan" Pereira.
The episode took place before the rematch between the Brazilian and Magomed Ankalaev, at UFC 320, in October 2025. During the promotion of the fight, the Russian tried to provoke Poatan by stating that he would defeat him and send him "back to the tire shop", making reference to the Brazilian's past before fame.
Long before becoming UFC champion, Poatan worked in a tire shop in São Bernardo do Campo and faced a battle with alcoholism. It was precisely in martial arts that he found an opportunity to change his life and build one of the most successful careers in MMA.
In the official confrontation promoted by the UFC, the Brazilian responded to the provocation spontaneously. Looking fixedly at Ankalaev, he just said: "I don't want to go back to the tire shop." Days later, he confirmed his favoritism by knocking out his rival and keeping the phrase immortalized among fight fans.
How the phrase became a meme in football
The context changed completely when the Brazilian internet decided to adapt Poatan's outburst to football.
For just over a month, the World Cup dominated the sports schedule. Daily games, great teams, international stars, packed stadiums and high-level matches were part of the fans' routine.
With the end of the World Cup approaching and the resumption of the Brazilian Championship, scheduled for the second half of July, a wave of publications emerged lamenting the return to the club reality.
That was when the new interpretation of the phrase was born. In the language of social networks, the "rubbershop" stopped representing Poatan's old work and began to symbolize the suffering of everyday football: refereeing errors, bad pitches, some games of low technical level and all the unpredictability of the Brasileirão.
Content creators started recording videos using the fighter's original audio while making montages with moves from Brazilian teams, always repeating: "I don't want to go back to the tire shop."
The joke spread quickly and reached official profiles linked to football. The Brasileirão itself joined the trend by publishing content asking fans if they were prepared for the "return of the tire shop".
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Source: CNN