Magomed Ankalaev defeated Alex Pereira via unanimous decision to claim the light heavyweight title at UFC 313. Pereira recently turned to his Amazonian roots in the aftermath, performing a tribal ritual to “recharge his warrior spirit." However, Ankalaev dismissed the theatrics with a sharp jab online.
The questions around approach have been brewing since Jiri Prochazka accused him of using black magic before their fights. Despite the claims, Pereira leaned further into his heritage and shared the ceremonial clip on Instagram.
Check out the X post below:
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Ankalaev reacted to the video on X, writing:
"I told this not going to work with me#Vodoking"
Check out Magomed Ankalaev's reaction below:
Despite their rivalry, Ankalaev claimed after UFC 313 that Pereira deserves the rematch, and the UFC is reportedly working towards orchestrating the rematch. 'Poatan' recently claimed that he was injured with a broken hand and was down with norovirus leading up to the clash. He even contemplated pulling out of the contest.
Meanwhile, Ankalaev is sitting on top of the 205-pound division, undefeated in 14 fights. He hasn't lost a fight since March 2018 when he succumbed to a submission loss against Paul Craig. Robert Whittaker and several other fans believe the rematch might play out differently against an injury-free Pereira. As for Ankalaev, he's confident in his skills to retain the title and hand Pereira a loss in the rematch.
Magomed Ankalaev teases a rematch against Alex Pereira in August
Magomed Ankalev wants to drown out the doubts and close the chapter on his rivalry with Alex Pereira with a quick turnaround. The Dagestani recently teased a potential date for their potential rematch.
Ankalaev dropped several clues on social media, pointing toward a massive summer card in Chicago. With negotiations reportedly underway and both sides seemingly on board, the UFC could be lining up a blockbuster main event in the Windy City. He took to X and wrote:
"One month ago, I broke a lot of hearts in August BIG ANK here to dunk Chicago Bulls style."
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According to a report by Forbes, UFC hasn't been to Chicago for an event since 2019, but it looks like the promotion could be headed back to the Windy City this summer. However, there are no confirmations from the organization yet on the event.