This is the UFC 320 live blog for Magomed Ankalaev vs. Alex Pereira 2, the light heavyweight championship main event bout Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Ankalaev defeated Pereira at UFC 313 this past March to claim the 205-pound belt and currently stands at No. 6 in the MMA Fighting Pound-for-Pound Rankings. The result sent Pereira tumbling down to the No. 10 spot.
Undefeated in 14 straight fights, Ankalaev (21-1-1, 1 NC) shrugged off a UFC debut loss to become one of the most dominant fighters in all of MMA. Ankalaev hasn’t done much to ingratiate himself with the fans, but if he beats Pereira again, he can put their feud to bed and move on to potential bouts with Jiri Prochazka, Khalil Rountree, or Carlos Ulberg.
What’s next for Pereira (12-3) is less clear, regardless of whether he wins or loses Saturday night. “Poatan” remains a marketable commodity for the UFC with championships in two divisions on his résumé, and there’s the possibility of chasing a third if Pereira decides to move up to heavyweight next. This has raised the question of just how motivated he is to get revenge on Ankalaev.
Check out the UFC 320 live blog for Magomed Ankalaev vs. Alex Pereira 2 below.
Magomed Ankalaev beat Alex Pereira once, can he do it again and in more impressive fashion this time? Or will his reign turn out to be just a blip in the incredible Pereira saga?
(odds according to FanDuel)
The odds are reversed from the first fight, with Ankalaev now a -250 favorite and Pereira the underdog at +205.
Herb Dean oversees tonight’s main event.
Pereira coming out with straight punches. He’s already looking way less tentative than in Fight 1. Inside leg kick by Pereira. Left from Ankalaev has Pereira hopping back out of range. Overhand right from Pereira catches Ankalaev. The champion goes for a reaction takedown, stuffed. Pereira raining down punches and elbows. Ankalaev just shelling up. He’s not getting cracked, but he’s offering little intelligent defense. Dean has to stop the fight. Incredible stuff from Pereira, whose story just gets more and more unbelievable.
Official result: Alex Pereira def. Magomed Anklaev via TKO (strikes) (R1, 1:20)
Pereira: “Vengeance is never a good thing. It’s like a poison sometimes. I told everyone I wasn’t in good condition last time. Nobody believed it. You saw it.”
He says he had a whole speech prepared, but instead asks for a moment of silence to pay respect to the recently deceased Arthur Jones, brother of UFC star Jon Jones.
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