Magomed Ankalaev nearly makes an enemy out of Jon Jones within hours of winning LHW title, gives savage reaction to 'Bones' two-word championship flex

Magomed Ankalaev’s victory over Alex Pereira at UFC 313 seemingly disrupted the potential superfight between the Brazilian and Jon Jones. Ankalaev’s dominant performance ended speculation about Pereira moving up to challenge Jones, as UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that a rematch between 'Poatan' and Anakalaev seems like a viable option.

Jones, the former longtime light heavyweight champion, subtly reacted to the fight by posting a “small flex” about his dominance in the division. The post he shared called attention to the fact that Jones has amassed more title defenses than all other current male champions in the UFC combined.

Check out Jon Jones' post below:

Ankalaev quickly fired back, labeling Jones a “big cheater." The Russian was hinting towards his controversial past that includes failed drug tests. He took to X and wrote:

"Yes, but all this CHAMPIONs clean [he is] big cheater we all know this."

Check out Magomed Ankalaev's reaction below:

Jones’ reign as UFC light heavyweight champion was one of the most dominant in history, but it was also marred by controversy. He defended the title multiple times against elite opponents like Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, and Glover Teixeira.

However, his legacy was tainted by failed drug tests, including testing positive for banned substances. His UFC 214 win against Cormier was overturned after he tested positive for a turinabol metabolite. The American also tested positive for clomiphene and letrozole at UFC 197 against Ovince Saint Preux. He was stripped off the title on both occasions (undisputed and interim, respectively).

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Magomed Ankalaev claims Alex Pereira was 'running away' the whole fight in their UFC 313 clash

Magomed Ankalaev secured the UFC light heavyweight title with a dominant unanimous decision win over Alex Pereira at UFC 313. Throughout the fight, Ankalaev neutralized Pereira’s striking ability and dominated clinch exchanges.

The Russian landed the more significant strikes, throwing 180 and connecting on 94, while Pereira landed 76 of 137 attempts. Ankalaev reflected on the fight at the UFC 313 post-fight press conference, stating that Pereira was avoiding striking exchanges with him. He said:

"I was confident, I kept on moving forward, I kept on pressuring him and he kept on running away from me. For 20 minutes this guy was running away from me. And then I heard at the end of the fight he said he wasn’t sure why the victory wasn’t given to him. Who’s supposed to be given the victory? I was pressuring him the entire fight. He was running for 20 minutes, and then he’s wondering who’s supposed to get the victory? I’m happy to do a rematch if he wants a rematch but then maybe in the rematch he can fight for real and not run away the whole time."

Check out Magomed Ankalaev's comments below (3:00):