“Put him Ankalaev”, said Islam Makhachev to Daniel Cormier when they were discussing Alex Pereira’s dominance. Of course, this was way before Magomed Ankalaev shut down Pereira to win the light heavyweight title at UFC 313. Magomed Ankalaev is one of those Dagestani fighters who doesn’t train with Team Khabib. But just because he doesn’t train with them, doesn’t mean he doesn’t have their deep-rooted respect as a representative of the sport for the Russian Republic of Dagestani.
“Congratulations Brother [Magomed Ankalaev] you made [a] history.. it was [an] amazing performance against [a] very tough opponent”, wrote Khabib Nurmagomedov on X, following the Dagestani light heavyweight champion’s victory at March’s pay-per-view event. And the compliments continued from Team Khabib and American Kickboxing Academy’s head coach Javier Mendez, who admitted that he was a bit surprised at Ankalaev’s performance two Saturdays ago.
While speaking on the Javier & Mo Show, coach Mendez said, “Well I thought that was a very tactical fight. I was honestly very surprised how well Ankalaev came at this fight.” Mendez further added, “ The first round played out a little bit like I thought it might play out, where Alex took the lead with the chopping at his lead leg with, you know, calf kick. And he was being very successful with it and I was thinking, ‘Oh it’s just going to get worse for Ankalaev as rounds went on.’ But lo and behold in the second round he started changing levels.”
UFC313 – Pereira vs Ankalaev: Media Day LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 6:Magomed Ankolev speaks with the press and the spectators for UFC313 – Pereira vs Ankalaev at Mandalay Bay on March 6, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages Las Vegas, Nevada Mandalay Bay LAS VEGAS, NV United States Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
Mendez described how Ankalaev used both his wrestling and striking beautifully to perform the rare feat of having Alex Pereira back down. Team Khabib’s coach further added, “He fought beautifully, you know, so that was a very big surprise for me, how well Ankalaev came at Pereira.”
As for Ankalaev, he’s basking in the praises of his fellow countrymen and their team leader. In reply to Khabib’s message on X, ‘Big Ank’ replied honoring ‘The Eagle’ for paving the way for Dagestani fighters in the UFC. He wrote, “Thank you, my brother, you began the way for us.” But this wasn’t always the case, and many people wrote Magomed Ankalaev off before the bout. Everyone from Daniel Cormier to Michael Bisping and even Israel Adesanya underestimated his ability to win against Pereira. Now the tables have turned, with even Joe Rogan complimenting Ankalev’s performance.
Joe Rogan described Ankalaev’s win as a ‘defining moment’
Ankalev knew how the MMA world was undervaluing his abilities before the UFC 313 fight. The 21-1-1 light heavyweight champ has only lost against Paul Craig in UFC during his debut fight. Ever since then, he has aced all his fights be it against Anthony Smith, Johnny Walker or Aleksandar Rakic. ‘Big Ank’ finally received his moment in 2025 and by the end of it, everyone seems to have changed their perspective on him.
Defeating Alex ‘Poatan’ Pereira—the reigning light heavyweight champ with a killer left hook—is not easy. But Ankalaev did it with style and precision despite fighting during Ramadan. Joe Rogan was compelled to honor Ankalev and said, “Now he’s the champion of the world, against the most devastating champion we’ve seen in years.” He added, “There were only a couple of moments where Pereira stunned him—the head kick and a few other good shots—but for the most part, Ankalaev controlled the distance, applied pressure, and forced ‘Poatan’ into an uncharacteristic position: backing up and avoiding shots.”
Pereira did defend 11 of Ankalaev’s takedowns but those takedown attempts were more of a tactic to slow the Brazilian down, rather than try to take him down. What do you think of the Dagestani’s journey to the title? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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