Magomed Ankalaev has sent a terrifying message to fans ahead of this weekend’s UFC 313 main evet.
Russian light-heavyweight Ankalaev is the last major challenger for Alex Pereira’s light-heavyweight title after wiping out the majority of his top five within a four-fight, 11-month run. It is believed that Pereira’s striking may be only neutralized by a top grappler such as Ankalaev.
Pereira has become famous for his catchphrase ‘Chama’, but his challenger insists that he will be putting an end to the meme come this weekend.
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Magomed Ankalaev sends chilling Alex Pereira warning ahead of UFC 313
At last night’s pre-fight press conference for UFC 313, Magomed Ankalaev managed to finally get head-to-head with Alex Pereira. The Russian has been in pursuit of his title shot for years, and was able to come within touching distance of the belt in Vegas last night.
Ankalaev has been goading Pereira for months since his last win made him a clear number one contender. But he was put on the back foot by a loud audience who booed his every word and showed their love to the champion.
“I’d like to say that I see in this fight everyone is against me,” Ankalaev said in a chilling statement to the crowd. “Everyone is saying ‘Chama! Chama! Chama!’ But guess what? Chama time is over.
“After this Saturday night, after the fight, you will all love me. The same people that are saying Chama now are going to be saying No Chama! It’s Ankalaev time.”
Alex Pereira has had incredible run as light-heavyweight champion
The run that Alex Pereira has made since moving up to light-heavyweight has been one of the most remarkable in modern UFC history. He sprinted through the middleweight division to a shot at Israel Adesanya back in 2022, winning gold within a year of signing to the promotion.
However, when he lost his belt in their rematch, ‘Poatan’ decided to move up and challenge for the belt at light-heavyweight. After a razor-close win over former champion Jan Blachowicz, he moved on to Jiri Prochazka, whom he dethroned in November of 2023 at Madison Square Garden.
From there, he has been on the run of a lifetime cleaning out the 205lb division. He stepped in on short notice to save both UFC 300 and UFC 303, knocking out Jamahal Hill first before winning a rematch against Prochazka in even more dominant fashion.
He then defended the belt against number seven contender Khalil Routree Jr at UFC 307 in October, at which point Ankalaev was defeating Aleksander Rakic. This set up arguably the toughest test of Pereira’s title reign to date, just 11 months after his first defence.
- Who is Magomed Ankalaev? Meet the light-heavyweight bogeyman who could dethrone Alex Pereira at UFC 313