Dana White addresses Alex Pereira fighting Khalil Rountree Jr. next instead of Magomed Ankalaev: "Timing is everything"

Dana White (inset) discusses Khalil Rountree Jr. (left) getting the title shot instead of Magomed Ankalaev (right). [Images courtesy: @ankalaev_magomed and @ufc on Instagram and Getty] — Dana White (inset) addresses Alex Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. (left) booking, Magomed Ankalaev's (right) next fight. [Images courtesy: Getty Images; @ankalaev_magomed & @ufc on Instagram]

Dana White recently offered his thoughts on booking Alex Pereira against Khalil Rountree Jr. instead of Magomed Ankalaev. White claimed that pitting Pereira and Rountree Jr. against each other made sense and that Ankalaev is one win away from a shot at gold.

Considering Ankalaev's position in the division, many believed the Russian fighter would be the next challenger for the middleweight title. However, the promotion announced that Ankalaev will take on Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi and that Pereira will face Rountree Jr. instead, who sits six places behind Ankalaev in the rankings.

With Pereira vs. Rountree Jr. now set to headline UFC 307 in Salt Lake City and Ankalaev in a title eliminator, White was recently asked why the top-ranked Dagestani contender was passed over. The UFC CEO cited "timing" as he had this to say at a recent presser:

''He [Ankalaev] didn't skipped over, he's got a fight coming up. We were laying the fights out now, Ankalaev's got a fight lined up, go in there, do your thing, look great, obvisouly you're next.''

Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more

White continued:

''We had to make this fight card and as you go down the line you start looking at it, it's clear Rountree makes a lot of sense and you said it yourself, 'No way in hell that's not a fun one.' Timing is everything.''

Check out Dana White's comments below:

Expand Tweet

UFC 307 will be Pereira's third time headlining a pay-per-view in 2024. 'Poatan' has successfully defended his light heavyweight title twice on short notice, with knockout victories over Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill.

Khalil Rountree Jr. claps back at critics over Alex Pereira fight

When Dana White announced that Khali Rountree Jr. would challenge Alex Pereira for the middleweight title at UFC 307, many felt the American was undeserving of a title shot. Among them were former champions Jan Blachowicz and Jamahal Hill.

Blachowicz notably took to X and stated that there were more deserving contenders for the title than the No.8-ranked contender. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Rountree Jr. hit back at his critics and sent a message to Pereira, saying: