Magomed Ankalaev may have earned a shot at Alex Pereira’s UFC light heavyweight title with a triumph at UFC Vegas 84. But the current situation reveals that he probably won’t get it, even after his touted victory.
An ‘X’ update from ‘Championship Rounds’ revealed that Pereira recently dismissed Anakalev’s case for a title shot. Moreover, the Brazilian also detailed which fighter he would like to have as his next title defense rival
Pereira has showcased incredible in-octagon prowess after his move to the UFC’s light heavyweight division. ‘Poatan’ has claimed the light heavyweight championship and also boasts a title defense despite being just three fights old as a UFC light heavyweight. Meanwhile, Magomed Ankalaev also boasts an impressive record of 19-1-1.
So fans counted Ankalaev as Pereira’s next title defense after his UFC 300 victory over Jamahal Hill. But, it would appear the champion prefers the former UFC light heavyweight, Jiri Prochazka.
“As we have already talked more or less with the organization, [Magomed] Ankalaev is kind of ruled out, and also what he said to me doesn’t make sense. “
One of the reasons Pereira stated for not wanting Ankalaev was that he thought the Russian was boring to watch.
He’s a guy who had two very bad fights, very boring to watch. So, I don’t think there’s any need to say his name… It’s not 100%, but [the next challenger should be] Jiri Prochazka.”
Alex Pereira rules out a fight against Magomed Ankalaev as his next title defense:
“As we have already talked more or less with the organization, [Magomed] Ankalaev is kind of ruled out and also what he said to me doesn’t make sense.
He’s a guy who had two very bad fights, very… pic.twitter.com/ztkRMPmEXg
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) May 3, 2024
Well, Pereira may have labeled Ankalaev’s last two fights as ‘boring’. But a look at the Russian’s performance against Johnny Walker at UFC Vegas 84 might have several fans contradicting Poatan’s opinion.
Meanwhile, in the literal big boy category, the UFC community wants that they want to witness Pereira moving up to the heavyweight division and challenging the champ, Jon Jones. Jones, of course, has been made aware of the Poatoan coming for him.
Alex Pereira may fight Jon Jones at some point in the future as well
Current UFC interim heavyweight champ, Tom Aspinall, had been chasing the UFC heavyweight title unification bout against Jones for quite some time. But the Rochester native never showcased any interest in it. However, ‘Bones’ may have started to take the Aspinall fight more seriously now that the UFC community is presenting Alex Pereira as a viable rival.
The 36-year-old questioned his fans about whom they wanted him to fight among Pereira and Aspinall. Pereira lost the poll as most fans elected Aspinall as Bones’ future rival over him. However, the situation indicates that there’s every possibility of the current UFC light heavyweight champ moving up to heavyweight in the future to challenge the divisional king, Jones.
That said, Pereira’s revelation about Prochazka being his preferred title defense rival is also expected to get the fans enthralled. It’s quite apparent that ‘Poatan’s’ Czech native rival will leave no stone unturned to ensure that the rematch doesn’t end like their first fight at UFC 295. A rerun, many would love to watch for sure.
