Ankalaev Didn’t Duck Salt Lake Showdown With Pereira

Ali Abdelaziz is countering recent comments from Pereira suggesting Ankalaev turned down a fall fight for the title in Utah.

Magomed Ankalaev didn’t turn down a UFC 307 title fight against Alex Pereira in Salt Lake City.

That’s the word from the Dagestani wrestler’s manager Ali Abdelaziz, who refuted a recent video released by Pereira accusing his client of ducking the fight.

“[UFC 307] is the opportunity that showed up and he didn’t want it,” Pereira said on his YouTube channel. “He has his reasoning, I don’t know what it is.”

“I can tell you this this is not true at all,” Abdelaziz countered on X (formerly Twitter). “I respect the man, but this is not what happened.”

There’s been a lot of speculation on why exactly Pereira is facing No. 8 ranked Khalil Rountree Jr. in Utah when No. 2 ranked Magomed Ankalaev is stuck on the undercard of UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi. There have been accusations that the UFC is protecting “Poatan,” and suggestions that Ankalaev is being punished for having a less-than-exciting fight style.

It’s not all negative reasoning: there’s also the possibility that Ankalaev was needed for the UAE card because he’s one of the top Muslim fighters in the promotion. With Islam Makhachev injured and unable to compete, the UFC simply wanted to deliver the biggest regional talents to their longtime partners in Abu Dhabi.

We doubt it’s because Pereira or Ankalaev turned the fight down. Is that what the UFC told Pereira? After watching the ‘Inside The UFC’ docu-series on Roku, we wouldn’t be surprised there was some creative storytelling involved to gloss over details and get Pereira vs. Rountree signed.

Does the situation make it more likely that the “Poatan” gravy train continues to chug away at a time where the UFC is running low on stars? Sure. Pereira is a -450 favorite to the +350 Rountree, while Ankalaev is a -250 favorite to beat the +210 light heavyweight champ.

What are the odds that the two will face each other next if they both win in the fall? Let us know in the comments below, Maniacs!