Magomed Ankalaev takes Alex Pereira’s title on UFC 313

Las Vegas – Magomed Ankalaev entered Octagon as public enemy # 1 to fanfavorit Alex Pereira and left as the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion on Saturday night in the main event in UFC 313.

Ankalaev came on top by beating “Poatan” to the punch in the first half of the match and stifling his violation with clinch work in the second half. His suffocating performance sucked the air out of the T-Mobile Arena, and Scorecards were academic when Fighter out of Dagestan earned a unanimous decision: Two judges scored it 48-47, while a third judge had it 49-46.

Pereira (14-3) was unable to make anything go as Ankalaev (20-1-1) forced him to fight from the back foot in much of the match. The pressure prevented the Brazilian from removing his signature left hook and was referred to look for opportunities to counter, which Ankalaev never gave him.

As the rounds went ahead and Pereria fell in the back of scorecards, Ankalaev changed intelligently to penetrate the master with clinchwork. Although he was unable to secure a dismantling, Ankalaev was able to worn down Pereria, leaving him desperately looking for a match ending he couldn’t find.

In the final round, the finish was academic. Ankalaev avoided taking any significant punishment. Pereira eventually landed a left hand but had nothing on it. Before he could put together any violation, Ankalaev sworded in and clumsy.

Although the amount lived the result, it was clear that there was a new leader of the light heavy weights.