Arman Tsarukyan shares honest reaction to Magomed Ankalaev beating Alex Pereira at UFC 313, details his scoring for title fight

Arman Tsarukyan has put forth his honest reaction to Magomed Ankalaev defeating Alex Pereira at the UFC 313 event. 'Ahalkalakets' also highlighted how he'd personally scored the matchup.

Ankalaev dethroned Pereira via unanimous decision to become the new UFC light heavyweight champion at UFC 313 on March 8, 2025. A number of fans suggested Pereira was robbed on the scorecards. Others felt Ankalaev did more than enough to win on points. Presently, the UFC seems to be leaning toward an immediate rematch between them.

Tsarukyan has now seemingly implied that he'd picked Magomed Ankalaev to defeat Alex Pereira at UFC 313 beforehand.

Speaking to Helen Yee, Tsarukyan claimed he knew Ankalaev would defeat Pereira. The UFC lightweight contender alluded to Ankalaev's supposed susceptibility to leg kicks -- as evidenced by his 2022 fight against Jan Blachowicz.

On that note, he recounted that Pereira did attack Ankalaev with leg kicks in round one but the Dagestani fighter adjusted well and eventually outpointed him. He said:

"Yeah. I knew that Ankalaev gonna beat him if it's not lucky punch. Yeah. I mean, we know, Pereira, he's so dangerous. He has a good left hook. And just, I thought left hook and kicks, leg kicks. So, first round, he started with leg kicks. And I was scared. Again, they going to kill his [Ankalaev's] legs, and then he gonna change his stance. But then he could change his game. He started to go forward, and he won last, I think, four rounds."

Tsarukyan also disclosed that he scored it three rounds to two in favor of Ankalaev:

"Three-two -- it's like, Magomed lost first, won second, third, and round number four. Five was like even, 50-50. You know? You never know."

Check out Arman Tsarukyan's assessment below (7:00):

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UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan's feud with Islam Makhachev

Arman Tsarukyan has been at odds with veteran Dagestani fighter, Islam Makhachev, for several years. He clashed against Makhachev in a short-notice matchup back in April 2019 and lost the back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision. Both fighters traded barbs with one another in the ensuing years and consistently asserted their superiority over the other.

Tsarukyan was booked to rematch Makhachev, who's the reigning UFC lightweight champion, this time around for his title at UFC 311 in January 2025. However, a back injury ruled him out. Makhachev instead faced and beat Renato Moicano at the event.

As of late, fighters like UFC featherweight kingpin Ilia Topuria and ex-interim UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje have been campaigning for a lightweight title shot against Makhachev.

Meanwhile, Arman Tsarukyan is also considered to be in the lightweight title mix and has vowed to earn a title shot, likely by defeating a top contender when he returns in April/May 2025.