Magomed Ankalaev Beats Alex Pereira at UFC 313 to Win Light Heavyweight Title

Magomed Ankalaev crowned himself as the new light heavyweight champion with a unanimous decision win over Alex Pereira in the main event of UFC 313 from Las Vegas.

The first round didn’t bring much excitement. Both fighters showed their respect for the other’s power, and the round was mostly punctuated by leg kicks. Of course, that was to Pereira’s advantage as the former kickboxer seemed to deliver more power with his. 

Ankalaev responded with a strong offering in the second round. He let his hands go and wound up landing a few solid punches before a left hand wobbled Poatan to close out the round. 

He didn’t quite win Round 3 as emphatically, but he was in control of the fight with the champion struggling to find a vulnerability in his opponent’s defense. 

Striking opportunities were even more rare as the fight went to the championship rounds. Ankalaev turned to his clinch wrestling to take over the fourth round. He smothered Pereira for almost the entire fourth frame. 

Pereira came out much more aggressive in the final round, looking for a finish. An early head kick stung Ankalaev, but he was able to keep Poatan under control in the latter half of the round. 

Ankalaev's run to the title isn't all that surprising at this point. He has an unbeaten streak that extends all the way to 2018 where he lost his UFC debut by submission to Paul Craig.

There were a few bumps in the road despite not taking a loss since then. He had to fight Ion Cutelaba twice in 2020 after a questionable stoppage in the first fight.

Eventually, he worked his way up to a title shot against Jan Blachowicz when the light heavyweight title was vacated by Jiri Prochazka. However, that bout resulted in no champion as the two fought to a split draw.

Ankalaev moved on to Johnny Walker and wound up with another odd rematch. The first fight resulted in a No Contest due to an illegal knee that left Walker unable to continue fighting.

Now Ankalaev is the champion and a new, bigger rematch could be on the horizon. An immediate rematch is always on the table when a champion like Pereira loses and Ankalaev seems open to the idea.

“When it comes to me, I’ve never said no to rematches,” Ankalaev said via a Russian translator, per MMA Fighting. “There’s two already I think in my career that somebody said that they deserve a rematch right away and I gave them that chance. So if it comes to me and I’m the one who decides whether he gets an opportunity for a rematch right away, of course, I’ll say yes.”

An instant rematch probably makes the most sense. Pereira had already taken out most of the top contenders in the division and Ankalaev is the new king of the mountain.

Let the hype for a massive rematch begin.