Former dual-weight champ Alex Pereira experienced a setback at UFC 313 as he lost his coveted belt to Magomed Ankalaev. The defeat was a shocker, but since ‘Poatan’ is always about the best performance inside the cage, a rematch was still a prospect. As soon as the fight ended, both fighters agreed that they would battle each other again, maybe in August. However, now there is a development where the Brazilian star has rejected the Dagestani’s offer to fight earlier at UFC 317.
Magomed Ankalaev recently revealed in X that he was approached by the UFC for a rematch at UFC 317. Meanwhile, Pereira dropped a bomb on fans when he allegedly posted UFC’s betrayal on X with a cryptic message. However, he later clarified on Instagram that his X account was hacked. ‘Big Ank’ wrote on X: “Guys, is there anyone in the Light Heavyweight division who’s willing to fight me? Because Jiri and Alex do not want to fight.”
Meanwhile, Jan Blachowicz and Jailton Almeida were ready to clash with the new light heavyweight champion. Blachowicz posted, “I’m always happy to settle our score, Magomed.” Meanwhile, Almeida said, “Hey champ, I accept the challenge, I’m willing to go down again and fight against you for the title! Alex always fought with short notice, he is too big for do that again, he don’t need it. Let’s go! Do you accept? I promise I’m not gonna take you down, only strike ”
However, there was no reply from Pereira, and Ankalaev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, decided to speak out in an interview with Submission Radio. As per the founder of Dominance MMA Management, “Ankalaev got offered to fight Alex Pereira in International Fight Week. Alex turned it down, he was offered to fight in August. We told him he was not ready. Maybe he’s going to be ready at the end of the year, maybe in Abu Dhabi. But I think Alex may have some injury or have some obligation because he has not been training, and you see, you know that his account was hacked, and I truly believe that Ankalaev hacked his account.”
Now, why did Pereira reject the offer? Was it an injury, or was it, as Ariel Helwani put it, that “he felt disrespected”? Pereira or the ‘hacker’ did mention the feeling dejected in that X post where he wrote, “I’ve never spoken poorly of the UFC, but with what I’ve just heard, I’m disheartened,” I’ve already had thoughts of not fighting anymore, and after what was just relayed to me, this may be the start.”
Maybe it’s too soon for Alex Pereira to make the necessary adjustments to tackle the current light heavyweight champion. Or is that he’s actually done fighting for the moment, and just needs a time out? Regardless, Ankalaev seems ready for him. But there are other contenders in the bleachers that need addressing, too. And Magomed Ankalaev was ready for another name—someone Alex Pereira beat twice in his title reign. But did this matchup materialize? Let’s find out.
Why did Jiri Prochazka reject Ankalaev’s callout?
Jiri Prochazka does not shy away from a dangerous clash inside the octagon. But this time the situation was a bit different. He decided to reject the Russians’ callout. Why? Well, for an academic pursuit. Jiri Prochazka’s manager, Tim Simpson, appeared on Ariel Helwani’s show, where he said: “Yes, they inquired about if Jiri could do it. Just wanna know what their options are, and I felt like it may not have been necessarily an option for sure. He’s doing his exams. That’s legit. He’s deferred them so many times. Like, man, I can’t defer this exam. So, he wants to finish the exams. But also, he’s done a lot of short-notice stuff for them before.”
So is he exchanging his gloves for pens and libraries? Well, not quite because ‘The Czech Samurai’ has not let go of his goals inside the cage. He cleared his stance by posting on X: “Target by target.” Meanwhile, Magomed Ankalaev seemed ready to clash with the best at UFC 317.
But with the UFC 317 main event between Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira already set in stone, ‘Big Ank’ will have to wait slightly longer before stepping back into the Octagon. With that being said, do you think Pereira will still consider a rematch with his old rival? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
The post Alex Pereira Remains Silent Despite Accusations From Magomed Ankalaev’s Manager as Rival Swoops for the UFC Title appeared first on EssentiallySports.
