Magomed Ankalaev was a success at UFC Fight Night 234 without even employing his best weapon, wrestling. For the Russian, it is intentional in order to send a message to his next target: light heavyweight champ Alex Pereira.
Ankalaev made a vicious knockout win to Johnny Walker in his last outing. The two made ample leg kick exchanges, but Round 2 was ended when Ankalaev sent a giant hook that dropped Walker. The Russian then immediately followed it with an uppercut to secure his win.
After this, the fighter demanded a title shot against the division champ. Ankalaev then sent a warning to “Poatan,” stressing he defeated his recent opponent without the help of wrestling. For the fighter, he can do the same to Pereira.
“I could’ve come out today and wrestled Johnny Walker,” Ankalaev said during the event’s post-fight press conference. “I could’ve taken him down right away and won with my ground-and-pound on the ground. Instead, I wanted to send a message. I wanted to stand up and knock him out, and that’s what I did.
“Now, for Glover Teixeira, I have a message: Don’t waste your time, and try to teach your student how to wrestle. ‘He’s not going to need it. I’m going to come out there, stand across him and I know that he’s been knocked out before as a middleweight, so imagine what’s going to happen at light heavyweight. Trust me, he’s not going to feel comfortable there.’”
Currently, the promotion still hasn’t shared details on who will be Pereira’s next match, but former champ Jamahal Hill (who was forced to leave the belt due to an injury) and his manager said in a recent interview that “Sweet Dreams” will be back and get the title shot right away. However, for Ankalaev, he’s more deserving of the shot, given his record and performance.
“The math works out,” Ankalaev said. “I’m more deserving of the belt because I have 10 victories, and six of them knockouts. Jamahal Hill has eight fights total in the UFC, so it’s just clear I’m a more deserving contender than Jamahal Hill.”
