Magomed Ankalaev doesn't just want to beat Alex Pereira. He wants to change his whole career trajectory.
The rivals face off in the main event of UFC 313 on March 8. Ankalaev has earned his shot the hard way, compiling a 13-fight undefeated streak over the past seven years to land a championship opportunity. Though Ankalaev doesn't have the name value of some of Pereira's other prospective opponents (including heavyweight champion Jon Jones and middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis), he vows to stop the Pereira hype train when they collide at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
On Sunday, Ankalaev tweeted, "This guy keep traveling and he forget he will be fighting for his life March 8. He will never be the same after this fight [Dana White], mark my word."
Ankalaev's threat alludes to Pereira's globe-trotting behavior, which included him flying to Sydney to support training partner Sean Strickland this past Saturday in the co-main event of UFC 312. As Pereira watched from the front row alongside Israel Adesanya, Strickland went on to lose a listless decision to middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis.
"Poatan" also has a growing social media presence, much to the chagrin of Ankalaev, who compared Pereira to a "TikTok chick."
"I never wanna hurt someone in my life like I want hurt Alex," Ankalaev wrote. He is a fake humble boy."
"I've been climbing mountain, chopping wood, swimming in freezing lake, and Alex been dancing and making video like TikTok chick," he added.
On paper, Ankalaev appears to be the perfect foil for Ankalaev, who is known for mixing in wrestling with a potent striking game. However, Pereira is arguably the most dangerous knockout artist in all of MMA, so it remains to be seen if Ankalaev will actually risk standing and trading with the Brazilian superstar.
On to the Next One. What's next for Dricus du Plessis, Zhang Weili, Sean Strickland, and Tatiana Suarez?
Hear from the champs, plus Dana White and Israel Adesanya.
DC instant reax.
Jack Slack Podcast. A deep dive into just how du Plessis keeps getting away with whatever it is he's doing inside the cage.
UFC 312 wasn't a bad card, but top to bottom it was certainly light on thrills. It feels like we're already looking ahead to UFC 313 -- heck, it feels like we're already looking ahead to this Saturday's UFC APEX card!