Tag: UFC 313

Chael Sonnen advises Alex Pereira against Magomed Ankalaev rematch

Chael Sonnen thinks Alex Pereira immediately rematching Magomed Ankalaev is a bad idea.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] immediately rematching [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] is a bad idea.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in the UFC 313 main event earlier this month at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

All signs are pointing to Pereira getting an opportunity to avenge his loss to Ankalaev next, but Sonnen warns him against that option. “Poatan” stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedowns, but was outstruck and controlled in the fight.

Sonnen sees a rematch likely going the same way.

“I’m a very big Alex Pereira fan, on a personal level, but also his work inside the cage,” Sonnen told Submission Radio. “I’ve got to tell you, there is nothing within that first fight – whether illness, injury, or a combination of both – there was nothing about that first fight that would lead a reasonable analyst to believe you’re going to have a different outcome in the second fight. … That first fight was 4-1. It was four rounds to one. It really was not overly competitive. There were some really well things done by Pereira, such as stopping the takedowns. We didn’t know that he had this ability. It was a pretty slow pace and there wasn’t a lot done.

“I’m just suggesting there was nothing we saw that would make us think that even at a slow pace, even at a drawn down action-packed night or lack thereof, there’s nothing to believe that Rounds 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are going to be any different. Whatever it is that Pereira is supposed to have learned in that job experience, why would we not believe an equal amount would be learned by Ankalaev? Whatever we’re supposed to believe that Pereira gained to do a better job next time, why do we not believe that Ankalaev also? Ankalaev is the one that had his takedowns stuffed. So in theory, he’s the one that would have felt and known where the adjustments are to get the big guy off his feet. And once he gets him on the ground, I can’t imagine that’s where the judges are going to see it his way.”

Sonnen says history proves that Pereira could still land big opportunities off of a loss – but off of two?

“It is a surprise and I think it’s a risk,” Sonnen said. “The way we got Pereira to 205 pounds is contrary to what people remember. Most people’s minds have played a trick on them. People believe Pereira got to 205 because he cleaned out 185, and that is not accurate. He got beat. When he got beat at 185, and he no longer has the belt, he no longer has to stay as the head of the division. He is free like anyone else to go anywhere that he wants. So if we wanted to get him to heavyweight, it wasn’t by beating Ankalaev, thus cleaning out 205.

“It would’ve been to get him beat, which we did. Our opportunity to bump him up to be able to take on the winner of a (Jon) Jones vs. (Tom) Aspinall or any scenario, be a backup fighter … the way to do it has already been done, and I’m not certain we should not have taken full advantage. The fight was close. He stopped the takedowns. It added to the story. Let it go. There was nothing embarrassing about it. But if you rematch and you drop two straight, particularly if it’s dominant, that’s where some embarrassment does set in.”

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Alex Pereira: Team Magomed Ankalaev’s greasing accusation an excuse for failed takedowns at UFC 313

Alex Pereira fired back at Magomed Ankalaev’s coach for accusing him of greasing at UFC 313.

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] fired back at [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag]’s coach for accusing him of greasing at UFC 313.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in their main event earlier this month at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

In an interview with Ushatayka, Ankalaev’s coach Sukhrab Magomedov accused Pereira of being sticky and having ointment on his body to help him defend takedowns. He even claimed that Pereira’s mentor Glover Teixeira was known to grease.

Pereira stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedowns, but denies trying to gain an unfair advantage.

“Absolutely did not put anything on my body,” Pereira said on “The Ariel Helwani Show” through an interpreter. “The way his coach is putting it, it sounds to me that he’s trying to make an excuse to justify the fact that he trained a guy to take me down, but the guy got stuffed for 12 of his takedown attempts. It’s like you’re in a company, you mess up, and you don’t do what you’re supposed to do, and then you try to make excuses to justify that. Absolutely didn’t put anything on my body.

“You also have to ask his coach if we put oil and vaseline on the mats too, because is that why Ankalaev fell on his back? He got taken down like that? It upsets me because even in my Glory career, I never did anything I wasn’t supposed to do. If you watch the one time that I got a point taken away, it was because the referee was saying there was too much clinching when there was not, but I always did everything by the book, and that’s why everything’s worked so good in my career.”

Pereira and Ankalaev are expected to rematch, with UFC CEO Dana White confirming that it will probably happen. Even Ankalaev acknowledged that “Poatan” is the most deserving of a shot.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Alex Pereira addresses Joe Rogan’s claim that he fought injured at UFC 313

Alex Pereira contemplated not fighting at UFC 313.

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] contemplated not fighting at UFC 313.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost the light heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in their main event earlier this month at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

UFC commentator [autotag]Joe Rogan[/autotag] claimed Pereira entered the fight with a hand injury and was battling norovirus. “Poatan” responded to the rumors that he fought compromised.

“I’m not trying to take credit away from Ankalaev,” Pereira said on “The Ariel Helwani Show” through an interpreter. “Many people try to do that kind of thing, and I’m not this type of guy. Everybody goes through problems, and I’m sure he had his own problems, too. I had mine. My hand is fine, but it did affect things. But I don’t want to use that as an excuse. I don’t want to make excuses. I don’t want to use this as leverage for anything.

“My moment is going to come to win the belt, and then I can disclose everything for you guys. Yes, (I considered not fighting at UFC 313). It was one of the more complicated (fight camps) from everything that happened. I don’t regret it because I’ve conquered a lot, I’ve motivated a lot of people and anytime I’ve pushed through things, I was able to overcome. Many times it worked, but this time it wasn’t my moment.”

All signs are pointing to an immediate rematch between Pereira and Ankalaev later in the year. Ankalaev admitted Pereira is the most deserving of a shot after watching Carlos Ulberg outpoint Jan Blachowicz in this past Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 255 co-headliner at The O2 in London.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Tom Aspinall surprised ‘uneducated fans’ thought Alex Pereira beat Magomed Ankalaev

Tom Aspinall can’t understand how certain people scored the UFC 313 main event in favor of Alex Pereira.

[autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] can’t understand how certain people scored the UFC 313 main event in favor of [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag].

[autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) defeated Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) by unanimous decision to become light heavyweight champion earlier this month at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Media outlets were almost split in their scoring of the fight (h/t MMA Decisions), with nine members awarding Pereira the fight. Interim UFC heavyweight champion Aspinall finds it baffling that anyone could have thought Pereira won.

“I think Ankalaev just had him guessing a lot,” Aspinall said in an interview with JNMediaUK. “I think Pereira’s level on the ground, I don’t know what level he’s at, but I think he’s still a bit wary of getting taken down. He definitely defended the takedowns well, but me with an educated eye watching it, I don’t think Ankalaev was really trying to take him down that much. He definitely tried a couple of times. I think he did 10 or 11 takedown attempts, but I would say only two or three of them he went full blast.

“I think the rest of the time, he was trying to tire him out with the grappling standing, like the cage grappling stuff. I think Ankalaev had the perfect game plan. He didn’t overcommit, tired him out. I can’t believe people watched that fight and thought that Pereira won. It was just wild to me how many uneducated fans are out there and how many uneducated fans thought it was a boring fight, as well. I thought it was an amazing fight, both guys did good, and I think Ankalaev was just a lot better than him on the night. That’s it.”

Pereira’s loss may have served Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) well as he eagerly waits for his title-unification bout with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones. However, Aspinall still thinks Pereira could move up to heavyweight down the line.

“He can do whatever he wants, can’t he? He’s an absolute megastar,” Aspinall said of Pereira. “I think there’s fights to be made at middleweight, light heavy or heavy for him. He can do whatever he wants.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

UFC 313 ‘Fight Motion’: Watch the Gaethje-Fiziev bonus-winning rematch in super slow motion

Check out video highlights from all the fights at UFC 313 in Las Vegas in super slow motion – including a main event title fight.

With its most active champion atop the card, there was plenty of anticipation for UFC 313 in “Sin City” earlier this month.

And the co-main event had a ton of heat on it, as well, for a lightweight rematch that was hastily assembled, but bonus-worthy.

The UFC 313 “Fight Motion” video cameras caught all the highlights in Las Vegas in super slow motion. You can check out the bloody action above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Brendan Schaub: ‘The UFC’s in some trouble’ after Alex Pereira lost light heavyweight title

Brendan Schaub thinks Alex Pereira losing his title is a problem for the UFC.

[autotag]Brendan Schaub[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] losing his title is a problem for the UFC.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s UFC 313 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Schaub scored Rounds 1, 3, and 5 for Pereira, but admits he thinks “he fought terribly.” He also thought UFC 313 was a terrible card, and that the promotion is in dire need of some stars.

“The UFC’s in some trouble, man,” Schaub said on his “The Fighter and The Kid” podcast. “Hey, name their big star. … Ankalaev? How many pay-per-views is he selling? Two: His mom, his uncle – who else? Who do you want? (Alexandre) Pantoja? 125? We don’t give a f*ck. 135? Who else have you got? Merab (Dvalishvili)? Nah, not happening. At middleweight, (Dricus Du Plessis) has a chance.”

Pereira may get an opportunity to reclaim his title after UFC CEO Dana White said an immediate rematch with Ankalaev is probably next. Both Pereira and Ankalaev are expecting to run things back as well.

Outside of Pereira, Schaub named who he sees as the current biggest star in the promotion.

“(Islam) Makhachev is probably their biggest star,” Schaub said. “Pereira is still their most pay-per-view guy, but Makhachev is the biggest star pound-for-pound, and you know, he’s exciting. He’s the one Dagestani that’s exciting.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Islam Makhachev’s coach open to ‘perfect matchup’ Justin Gaethje next after UFC 313

Javier Mendez is not opposed to Justin Gaethje getting the next UFC lightweight title shot.

[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] is not opposed to [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] getting the next UFC lightweight title shot.

Gaethje (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) called for a title shot after defeating Rafael Fiziev by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s UFC 313 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Considering that UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) is yet to fight Gaethje, Mendez doesn’t see why not. Ranked ahead of Gaethje are Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan, both whom Makhachev already beat.

UFC CEO Dana White also seemed to be open to the idea of a Gaethje title shot.

“Fantastic. Then it’s Justin Gaethje. We’ll focus on Justin Gaethje,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “That would be, ideally for us, the perfect matchup based on where his standing is and what he’s done. He’s a big, known guy and Islam hasn’t fought him, So he’s perfect.”

The other option for Makhachev is Ilia Topuria, who vacated his featherweight title for a move up to 155 pounds. Makhachev previously said he wasn’t interested in taking on another 145-pounder in Topuria, but Mendez says the champion will fight whoever the UFC offers,

“It’s not important to me,” Mendez said on who Makhachev fights next. “Let’s focus on whoever the UFC decides because I’m not even going to talk about something that’s not even there. What is there, is what Dana (White) talked about. So me, I’d rather focus on what Dana said.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Chael Sonnen: ‘The narrative that Alex Pereira can’t wrestle is over’ after UFC 313

Chael Sonnen is still hopeful that Alex Pereira could pose Jon Jones problems after UFC 313.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] is still hopeful that [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] could pose [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] problems after UFC 313.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Had Pereira won, many thought a super fight against UFC heavyweight champion Jones would be on the horizon. While that’s off the table for now, Sonnen thinks that despite losing, Pereira shut down a criticism about his game when he stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedown attempts.

“You don’t get very far when you start talking about Alex Pereira vs. Jon Jones,” Sonnen said on his YouTube channel. “You just don’t get there because we know that Jon can throw him down and beat him up. Like, that’s just something that Jon does so well. He can throw people down and then beat them up.

“Well, you go watch this fight, and you go, ‘Hey, you know what? It turns out that old Alex Pereira isn’t so easy to take down.’ Alex Pereira really showed some stuff. That entire narrative that he can’t wrestle and he can’t defend is now gone. Ankalaev revealed his plan and that was to take him down – his plan failed.”

However, Daniel Cormier disagrees. He thinks Pereira’s loss to Ankalaev showed that he’d have trouble dealing with the strength at heavyweight.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Firas Zahabi: Alex Pereira went through analysis paralysis in UFC 313 title loss

Firas Zahabi thinks Magomed Ankalaev had Alex Pereira overthinking throughout the fight at UFC 313.

[autotag]Firas Zahabi[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] had [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] overthinking throughout the fight at UFC 313.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Zahabi was surprised that Ankalaev failed to get Pereira to the ground, and even more surprised that he was able to win without any takedowns landed.

“It wasn’t the most exciting fight, but here’s what’s amazing: Ankalaev outstruck him the whole fight,” Zahabi said on his YouTube channel. “The whole fight was standing, and Ankalaev wins. But if you put these two in a kickboxing match, I think all of us would agree that Pereira wins. Pereira wasn’t throwing, even though his corner was begging him to throw between rounds. … Pereira was hesitant. After Round 1, he was hesitant. He got stunned, and ever since he got stunned, he was hesitant.

“I have my idea why I think he was hesitant. One, he was worried about the takedown. He didn’t want to get taken down. It was on his mind when he got stunned. Now he’s worried about the striking and the takedowns. It was too much. He had to think twice before he throws, and he was like paralysis by analysis. He was trying to predict what Ankalaev was going to do. Ankalaev was more unpredictable than Pereira. Pereira, we all know what’s going to come – the low kick, the knee, the left hook.”

The famed Tristar Gym head coach says Pereira was highly conservative throughout the fight and never took any risks. Although “Poatan” stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedown attempts, Zahabi thinks having to be wary of it led to his tentativeness on offense.

“I think he had an off night, and he was overwhelmed maybe by the threat of wrestling, but he didn’t throw much. It seemed that after he got stunned in Round 2, he just kind of got really conservative. It was crazy. It surprised everybody.”

Zahabi gave his round-by-round breakdown, and says no matter how you scored the rounds, there should be no debate on the outcome.

“Round 1, Pereira did incredible,” Zahabi said. “He was very dominant. It looked like Pereira was going to kick Ankalaev’s leg out. Ankalaev was in the southpaw position. The kicks weren’t as powerful, but Pereira is so experienced, it doesn’t make a difference. However, the low kicks are not as powerful because he’s not kicking with his power side. Still, the kicks were accumulating. Round 1 goes to Pereira.

“Round 2, Ankalaev hurts Pereira, stuns him, puts on the pressure. His corner was egging him on to put pressure and he did. Round 3, not a very super active round for either fighter, but Ankalaev kind of edged it out. I think most people gave Round 3 to Ankalaev. What can I say, Rounds 4 and 5 even for Ankalaev. I know a lot of people gave Round 3 to Pereira, OK, give him Round 3, he still loses 3-2 at best.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Alex Pereira’s coaches think he beat Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313, promise ‘Poatan 2.0’ in rematch

Alex Pereira’s coaches disagree with the UFC 313 decision.

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]’s coaches disagree with the UFC 313 decision.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in Saturday’s UFC 313 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Both Glover Teixeira and Plinio Cruz thought their fighter should have gotten his hand raised after managing to stuff all of Ankalaev’s takedown attempts and keeping the fight on the feet.

“We had this defeat, but in my opinion he won,” Teixeira said on Pereira’s YouTube channel (h/t MMA Fighting). “He lost on points, so now we go back to the drawing board and adjust a few things, train hard and go back and get this rematch and make history. ‘Poatan’ has made history before, and he will make history again. He’s a great warrior and I’m very proud of him.”

Things are trending towards an immediate rematch between Pereira and Ankalaev, and Cruz vows a better version of his fighter.

“Life is made of ups and downs, and those ups and downs are what make us who we are on this journey to our goal,” Cruz said. “We’ll come back stronger, regroup as a team. The vibe was great this week. We have no excuses. ‘Poatan’ was fine, and I think he won the fight. This is a stumble, not a fall, and it will only make him stronger, our team stronger. Humans evolve more in times of adversity. Rivalries make us grow.

“It went (Ankalaev’s) way this time, so we’ll train more, study more, get better to deliver you a better version of ‘Poatan’ – more mean. What this guy’s done was make it worse for him because now he’ll fight ‘Poatan 2.0.’ It’s happened to ‘Poatan’ before. It’s not the first time, and a true champion is the one that stumbles but continues moving forward and reconquers it. ‘Poatan’ will reconquer the belt in the rematch. (He’ll be) a more mean version, and our team will be on a level that is higher than it already is.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.