Magomed Ankalaev was welcomed home by hundreds of fans for the first time as UFC champion last night in Makhachkala.
Ankalaev won the light-heavyweight title on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 313, putting an end to Alex Pereira’s dominant reign atop the division. For the entirety of the build-up and most of the aftermath, he has played the heel with American fans who have more embraced the former champion.
However, he was considerably more popular when he touched back down on Russian soil, being crowded by Dagestani supporters upon his return.
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Magomed Ankalaev enjoys heroes welcome during UFC 313 homecoming
Magomed Ankalaev had been preparing for his fight with Alex Pereira for months, taking in the last few weeks in Las Vegas. As such, he has been away from his home in Makhachkala for a long time, and was not world champion when he left.
After an impressive five round victory which saw him win on all three scorecards on Saturday night, he quickly returned to Russia. There, he was met by hundreds of fans in the streets who welcomed him back as a triumphant champion.
He adds to the legacy of Dagestani world champions in major organizations that includes Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev. Even PFL champions Usman Nurmagomedov and Gadzhi Rabadanov are from the region, with many more top fighters on their way.
Magomed Ankalaev is one of the UFC’s biggest heels
Despite appearing to be a relatively quiet individual away from a social media presence which he may or may not even dictate, Magomed Ankalaev is not a fan favorite. There is a belief that he is a ‘boring’ fighter almost exclusively based on where he is from, and he played the heel for last weekend’s fight.
Despite outstriking Pereira at multiple intervals and even almost stopping him in the second round, a few minutes of clinch work against the cage angered fans at UFC 313. He has since become a new villain in the sport, with supporters in America keen to see him lose his belt quickly.
It is a similar story for many Dagestani fighters, whose styles are more focused on grinding out wrestling-heavy wins as opposed to having fan-friendly stand-up battles. But Ankalaev did attempt to win the fight on the feet on Saturday, and in fact never even scored a takedown in 12 efforts.
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