Everybody and their dog knows the biggest talking point for the upcoming Alex Pereira vs. Magomed Ankalaev UFC 313 title war. Many expect Ankalev, who has a pretty good ground game, to take ‘Poatan’ down and maul him there. The light heavyweight champ, of course, is a pure striker. And it wouldn’t be an overstatement to call the 205lbs champ the best striker in the sport. However, the Brazilian’s ground game is a bit lacking, to say the least.
However, Khabib Nurmagomedov’s former coach, Javier Mendez, feels that the light heavyweight champ may shock the Russian challenger and everyone else with his grappling. “Yeah, you know, this guy [Alex Pereira], wherever he’s at, he’s always training, he’s always learning, he’s always improving. He’s continuously evolving, Alex Pereira is continuously evolving no matter where he’s at, no matter what he’s doing.”
“He’s always sparring with somebody, he’s never taking time off. So, you know, don’t don’t sleep on him, on his grappling. For darn sure do not sleep on his grappling.” The AKA head honcho said on his official YouTube handle.
June 29, 2022, LAS VEGAS, NV, LAS VEGAS, NV, United States: LAS VEGAS, NV – June 29: Alex Pereira meets with the press for media day at UFC Apex for UFC 276 – Adesanya vs Connonier – Media Day on June 29, 2022
The last time we saw Pereira facing a bonafide grappler was when he slugged it out against Jan Blachowicz, who faced the champ back in 2023. The former 205lbs champ gave him hell by taking the Brazilian down early and often in their UFC 291 clash. But since then, ‘Poatan’ has improved his grappling skills a lot, as Mendez pointed out.
Since the Blachowicz fight, Pereira has earned a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under his coach Plinio Cruz. And to sharpen his ground game further going into UFC 313, the Brazilian has enlisted the help of Dillon Danis, who once helped Conor McGregor prepare for his rematch against Nate Diaz. However, Mendez was quick to sound a note of caution for those.
Javier Mendez’s key to winning for Alex Pereira at UFC 313
While Alex Pereira may have improved his ground game quite a lot since UFC 291, there are levels to this game. And Mendez, who has seen his fair share of excellent grapplers, feels that despite these improvements. “He’s [Pereira is] not going to be able to match Ankalev’s grappling if it does go to the ground.”
And like almost everyone else, Mendez feels that the fight will come down to Ankalaev’s grappling vs. Pereira’s striking. Whoever can impose their game plan and keep the fight where they want, will win the fight, according to the AKA head coach.
“It’s going to be one of those. Can he get back up, you know, sooner than later… But will Ankalaev look to take him down? Which I think he should. I think his primary focus should be to take him down because at the end of the day, the longer you stand with Alex, the worse it can get for you. Because Alex is so experienced in the stand-up, so much experience, I would always go with your strength. And Ankalaev’s strength over Alex is the ground, so take him down,” Mendez added.
What do you think about Javier Mendez’s thoughts on the Alex Pereira vs. Magomed Ankalaev UFC 313 clash?
The post “Don’t Sleep on His Grappling” – Team Khabib Gives Magomed Ankalaev a Wake-Up Call on Alex Pereira Before UFC 313 Fight appeared first on EssentiallySports.
