Is Magomed Ankalaev From Dagestan? Which Nationality and Ethnicity Does the UFC Light Heavyweight Belong To?

Magomed Ankalaev has been garnering quite a bit of attention, not just with his impressive skills in the MMA cage, but also with his shots at Alex Pereira. The fans consider him the only man who might defeat the man with the hands of stone in the light heavyweight division. Needless to say, Ankalaev has been dominating the Octagon with his superior grappling techniques, which are the sole reason why netizens have begun to pit him against ‘Poatan’.

With 19 victories and just one single loss in his professional MMA career, Ankalaev is currently on a 10-fight win streak. That is if we ignore the draw he had with Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282. This has made the world wonder about the origins of the light heavyweight #1 contender. Today, let’s find out all about Ankalaev’s roots.

Where is Magomedov Ankalaev from? Ethnicity and nationality

Ankalaev is a Russian fighter who hails from the city of Makhachkala. He was born there and went to Dagestan State University, where he discovered his love for mixed martial arts through wrestling. He would soon become a champion in Amateur MMA at the national level, further pushing his interests towards the UFC.

An interesting connection can be made between Khamzat Chimaev and Ankalaev. Ankalaev won the Akhmat FC light heavyweight Grand Prix. Akhmat Fight Club is now the same club Chimaev associated with after he moved to the UAE.

Ankalaev made his debut in the UFC back in 2018 in a fight against Paul Craig. He lost his first fight via submission in the third round at the very last minute. It was interesting to see the fighter almost pull through the triangle choke just to lose when he was just about to be released. Either way, he did not let it stop him dead in his tracks.

He would later go on to secure a win against Marcin Prachnio at UFC Fight Night in Moscow. He knocked out Prachnio in the very first round to finish the match in grand fashion. And finally, he defeated Johnny Walker back in January 2024, with a phenomenal KO.

As Ankalaev traversed the world of mixed martial arts with his eyes set on attaining greatness, the fight fans began connecting him with Khabib Nurmagomedov. After all, they do hail from the same region. But are they actually related? Let’s find out!

Is Magomed Ankalaev related to Khabib Nurmagomedov?

There is no real connection between Ankalaev and Nurmagomedov except for the fact that both of them belong to the Avar ethnic group. It’s also interesting to note that both, Ankalaev and Makhachev fight out of the same Makhachakla region of Russia.

Both Nurmagomedov and Ankalaev happen to be devout Muslims as well as Dagestanis. While Magomed trained in his home country of Russia, Nurmagomedov trained at San Jose. Now, the fighter is all geared up for his next fight and his fans cannot wait.

Ankalaev is all set to land against Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308. With his eyes set on fighting the light heavyweight champion the Russian will indeed try his best to claim a victory over his Austrian opponent. No doubt, he will have the support of his country folks backing him up.

Who do you think would win between Ankalaev and Rakic? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.