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UFC 320 on Saturday will be headlined by the rematch between Magomed Ankalaev and Alex Pereira for the light heavyweight title, and there has been some fire shown between the typically tight-lipped combatants. While there are indications the bad blood seen between the two is manufactured, it still represents more heat than what the even-keeled Pereira has ever displayed in the past. One might think Pereira would have more to lose in this contest than usual. However, he’s the one with far less to lose, and it isn’t just because Ankalaev is the champion.

The problem with Ankalaev is that he may be the most despised active champion the UFC has ever had to promote, at least by the organizational brass. UFC CEO Dana White may have developed serious beef with Tito Ortiz, but that was long after “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” lost the championship. There are some understandable reasons why the UFC looks at Ankalaev in that manner, though other factors lean more towards being bunk than legitimate.

The biggest slam against Ankalaev is that he’s boring. I’m not going to argue vociferously against that charge, as the Russian has had several contests that could have provided cures for insomnia, but he’s also not the worst offender we have ever seen claim a championship. Ciryl Gane may have only been an interim champion, but the UFC continues to book him in title fights despite his not having the same proclivity for violent finishes that Ankalaev possesses. Perhaps that has something to do with the UFC wanting to expand further into France. Nevertheless, Gane has a reputation for being boring, too. An argument could be made that he’s lost three of his last five fights, and yet, the UFC has made him the next man up against Tom Aspinall. The boring argument loses a lot of steam with Gane.

Admittedly, Ankalaev’s personality is on the dry side, but that hasn’t stopped others from getting a push. Mark Hunt notoriously was on the silent side when giving interviews, often offering just single-word replies to questions in his post-fight interviews. Then again, that was part of Hunt’s charm. I suppose it could be the language barrier, as Ankalaev hasn’t made the same type of effort to learn English that some of his more popular Russian cohorts have. Regardless, language barriers haven’t stopped the UFC from promoting or pushing fighters before.

If one were to proclaim I’m being conspiratorial, just look at the road Ankalaev took to becoming champion. While there are fighters who have had longer roads, those roads featured losses along the way. Ankalaev dropped his UFC debut, literally at the last second, and hasn’t lost a fight since. There were some asterisks along the way, but it took his 14th consecutive fight remaining unbeaten before he claimed the title. When you consider Pereira captured his first championship in his fourth UFC appearance, that’s unreal.



Granted, Ankalaev had an opportunity to claim the title in the 10th fight of that streak. He battled Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282 for the vacant crown, leading to a highly controversial draw. Even though most found the decision ludicrous—92% of the media scores on MMADecisions.com favored Ankalaev—White found the bout to be such an abomination on the eyes that he immediately booked a new light heavyweight title fight featuring two different combatants. Given that most believed Ankalaev should have been champion following his encounter with Blachowicz, perhaps it could have been seen as fair if he had fought the new titleholder immediately. However, that was far from the case.

Ankalaev’s next fight wasn’t booked until almost a year later, and it came against Johnny Walker. His wretched luck again reared its head, the fight going to a no decision thanks to an illegal knee from Ankalaev. Perhaps to keep the “boring” Ankalaev out of the title picture a bit longer, White was all too happy to rebook their fight to get a definitive ending. Despite Ankalaev delivering in the rematch, he was then forced to face Aleksander Rakic. He only received the title shot after Pereira had cleared out every other contender with the slightest of claims. Maybe I can understand Pereira defending against Jiri Prochazka and Jamahal Hill, given that they were former champions, but Khalil Rountree ahead of Ankalaev? It’s also worth remembering Rountree’s title shot came off a failed PED test.

If Ankalaev had to put up with all that to earn his second title shot, who honestly believes the UFC will be willing to give him an immediate opportunity to regain his belt should Pereira win their rematch? No way that’s happening. The UFC has a worthy contender ready to go with Carlos Ulberg. Should Ankalaev lose, he’s going to be thrown down as far in the pecking order as the UFC can realistically throw him. The UFC has already proven it would rather have Prochazka, Hill or Rountree fight for the title ahead of Ankalaev. Any of them would likely get dibs against Ulberg should he emerge as champion next year. Maybe Azamat Murzakanov or the aforementioned Rakic moves ahead of Ankalaev in the UFC’s unofficial standings following their upcoming contest. If Vadim Nemkov somehow finds a way into the UFC, you can bet he will be plugged in ahead of Ankalaev.

The only way for Ankalaev to ensure he’s in the title picture is to remain the champion. The UFC was slow to give him opportunities to fight for the belt, and it’s hard to believe the company won’t play those types of games should he lose it. Pereira is going to be given every possible chance to be one of the faces of the organization as a proven fan favorite. That’s why he’s getting an immediate rematch. If he loses here, it wouldn’t be a shock to see him move up to heavyweight and immediately get a crack against Aspinall. Would the UFC do the same thing for Ankalaev? Probably not.

Pereira’s legacy is already largely set. Not that he can’t strengthen it, but this fight won’t make or break it. Ankalaev needs this win for his legacy. The UFC isn’t going to give him any quick returns to championship gold. If he wants to be more than just a guy who claimed the title, beating Pereira a second time is a necessity. Otherwise, he’s foregoing any chance of being one of the all-time greats.