The rumored clash between Alex Pereira vs Magomed Ankalaev for the light heavyweight title is long overdue, according to many in the MMA community. While Ankalaev was originally expected to contest for the gold after his prevailing win over Johnny Walker, the UFC decided to instead go for Pereira and Khalil Rountree Jr. in a scintillating striking matchup. This raised many doubts and speculations ran high if the promotion was safeguarding its “golden goose” in the form of ‘Poatan’.

But now after Ankalaev’s dominant outing against Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308, his contendership can no longer be questioned. Talking about this possible matchup, middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis shared his two cents on the fight. And to no surprise, he was pretty unsure about how Pereira would perform given the fact that Ankalaev is an elite grappler. 

While speaking to ESPN MMA, the South African said, “Obviously his [Ankalaev’s] last performance [at UFC 308], not a big one. [Ankalaev] is a great fighter you know, he’s an all-arounder obviously, and has great wrestling. But I think maybe, you know, some fights that happen sometimes you… just don’t have the night that you wish you had and yeah, it wasn’t a great fight to watch. But, you know, Ankalaev… you know, has good defense and he has good ground game and he has all that. We don’t know what happens when Ankalaev takes Pereira down.”

However, ‘Stillknocks’ still gave Pereira the edge and said that ‘Poatan’ was an “absolute machine” and promptly declared that he could not go against him unless he fought Ankalaev. Meanwhile, the ‘Russian Terror’ has started a barrage of trash-talking in over to garner the 205lbs king’s attention.

Magomed Ankalaev calls out Alex Pereira for a title fight

Magomed Ankalaev has already called out Pereira once for allegedly ducking him in the past. Naturally, his latest challenge once again reinforces his determination to secure a shot at the title. He took a jibe at the Brazilian star through a message on X and stated, “@AlexPereiraUFC if this skinny guy can put you to sleep, what do you think I can do to you? Please@MickMaynard2 @DanaWhite, get my next meal ready for me.” 

This callout referred to Israel Adesanya’s knockout of Alex Pereira at UFC 287. Fresh off his unanimous decision victory in Abu Dhabi, Ankalaev doubled down during the post-fight press conference, calling out Pereira for what he sees as avoidance. Frustrated and determined, Ankalaev stated, “Let’s do it: Alex, stop running away from me. I’ve heard he wants to fight during Ramadan. We’re not fighting in Ramadan. So, if he’s ready, we can fight either before or after Ramadan.”

With Ankalaev eager to step into the octagon, and Pereira seemingly biding his time, it raises the question: will the UFC push to make this fight happen, or will Pereira take a break before his next challenge? Share your thoughts in the comments below!