Alex Pereira DENIES avoiding the Magomed
Ankalaev fight:“You gotta sort that with the organization…
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It’s not my fault that Ankalaev has such a boring style of fighting
that nobody wants to watch.”🎥 @KevinI
#UFC
#MMA
#UFC307 pic.twitter.com/42OS04SuHr— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS)
September 28, 2024
Alex
Pereira maintains that he never turned down an offer to fight
Magomed
Ankalaev.
Pereira defends his light heavyweight title against Khalil
Rountree Jr. in the main event at UFC 307
on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. While he is
riding a five-fight winning streak with four finishes, Rountree
surpassing Ankalaev for a title shot was nonetheless a bit of a
surprise.
Currently unbeaten in his last 12 outings, Ankalaev will face
Aleksandar
Rakic at UFC 308
on Oct. 26 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. While many consider
Ankalaev the rightful contender, Pereira previously hinted that the
Russian turned down a title shot against him at UFC 307 due to
location and timeline preferences.
Pereira vs. Rountree Jr. Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order
Now!
However, Ankalaev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, defended his client,
claiming he was never offered a title shot and accusing Pereira of
ducking instead. Pereira recently dismissed allegations of avoiding
Ankalaev, putting the onus on the UFC for the booking. Abdelaziz
also said Ankalaev not fighting for gold at 205 pounds is
“bulls—t.” Responding to Abdelaziz, Pereira inquired if the manager
considers UFC top brass to be a joke. “Poatan” also took a dig at
Ankalaev’s lackluster grappling-heavy style, suggesting that might
be the reason the promotion doesn’t want him fighting for the
title. Rather than ducking Ankalaev, Pereira looks forward to
displaying his previously unseen wrestling skillset when the
opportunity presents itself.
“Even his manager [Ali Abdelaziz] right, super renowned guy, guy
famous of the MMA world, goes and says that, ‘Oh this guy is not
gonna fight,’” Pereira told Kevin Iole. “Go to talk to Dana White.
But Dana White doesn’t want to make the matchup. It’s not [me]. And
he goes and says that the fact Ankalaev is not fighting for the
title is a joke. Because the UFC and Dana White and the guys that
decide, so they’re [a] joke? They’re clowns? They’re [a] circus? So
you [have to] sort that with the organization. But honestly, it’s
not my fault that Ankalaev have such poor style fighting that
nobody wants to watch. That the guys don’t want to put him in. I’m
ready to fight the guy, he’s ready to fight me. So whenever they
[make] the fight, people talk about my ground, so that’s a good
chance to go and show everybody.”