UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Magomed Ankalaev puts his belt on the line in a rematch against Alex Pereira, headlining UFC 320 from Saturday night into Sunday in Paradise, Nevada.
Match News and Current Form
Present in the UFC since 2018, Magomed Ankalaev had his first opportunity at UFC 282 to claim the vacant light heavyweight title, but his fight with Jan Błachowicz ended in a split decision. It wasn’t until this past March that he got a second chance, and this time, he made it count. It was a perfect gameplan: Ankalaev tired Pereira out with his boxing, then imposed his wrestling, ultimately winning by unanimous decision.
However, this will be his very first title defense—a crucial aspect in the mental approach to the fight and a major unknown in terms of his ability to withstand pressure. Indeed, Ankalaev’s only MMA defeat came in his UFC debut, losing by submission to Paul Craig, when expectations were high.
Alex Pereira, on the other hand, is one of the UFC fighters to have won belts in two weight classes. After taking the middleweight title from Israel Adesanya—and losing it right after to the same opponent—he moved up to light heavyweight, beat Jiří Procházka to capture the belt, and successfully defended it three times, most recently against Khalil Rountree Jr, before falling to Ankalaev.
To once again become one of the faces of the organization, the Brazilian must win this rematch. However, at 38 years old, has “Poatan” found the solution since his last fight?
Head-to-Head History
The two fighters faced off on March 8th in the main event of UFC 313. The bout went the distance, with Magomed Ankalaev winning by unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47), a victory largely secured in the final two rounds, which the Dagestani controlled with effective wrestling, preventing “Poatan” from answering back.
Hot Stats and Streaks
Ankalaev has won four of his five UFC fights against Brazilian opponents—the fifth ended in a no contest.
Ankalaev has won 6 out of his 15 UFC fights by KO or TKO.
Pereira has won both UFC title challenger fights, across all divisions.
Pereira has won five out of his seven UFC title fights, all five victories by KO or TKO.
Betting Analysis
A solid wrestler, Ankalaev succeeded in shutting down Pereira’s striking in their first meeting. This detail is enough to bet on Magomed Ankalaev winning by decision.
Author : Sébastien Gente
Translated by artificial intelligence
