Magomed Ankalaev could not replicate the dominating performance he showcased against Alex Pereira in their first fight when they locked horns for a second time at UFC 320. The Dagestan native was a victim of yet another ‘Poatan’ KO win, but his manager claims that the former champion wasn’t in the right shape to compete that night. Ali Abdelaziz claims that all the problems were communicated to Dana White and Co. as well.

In just 80 seconds, Alex Pereira took down Magomed Ankalaev to become a 2-time UFC light heavyweight champion and added to his resume once again. A certain section of the fan base was surprised to see how easily the Dagestan native went down, and now it has been revealed that Ankalaev did not hit the mats for over a month during his preparation. Here’s what Ali Abdelaziz had to say.

Magomed Ankalaev was injured, and Dana White knew about it

“Ankalaev did not train for almost 40 days for this fight,” Ali Abdelaziz told Submission Radio almost a month after UFC 320. He claimed that Magomed Ankalaev injured himself in his hometown, and when he came back, he wasn’t really in any condition to attend a training camp. The UFC apparently was aware that the former champion was on medication, and during that time, he engaged in some light training to avoid exacerbating his condition.

“He came from Dagestan… with messed-up ribs, and he sparred three times. Every time we had to stop the sparring [sessions],” Magomed Ankalaev’s manager further stated. “UFC know about it. He was getting injections, he was getting cortisone, he was getting stem cells. The only things he did for 40 days [were] run, jump ropes, and hit mitts, and do conditioning. He did zero wrestling, zero grappling.”

At UFC 303, it was Alex Pereira who saved the PPV after Conor McGregor withdrew due to an injury. That was widely talked about, but there was no talk when Magomed Ankalaev did at UFC 320, according to Ali Abdelaziz. He has requested Dana White and the other execs to consider the Russian star’s act and reward him accordingly, which, of course, would be a title shot in the coming months. “I hope the UFC will appreciate what he has done for them to keep the main event going on. And I think he’s one fight away, honestly, from the title,” Ankalaev’s manager added.

Magomed Ankalaev will certainly need a big win in his next fight to fight for the title again. While we try to figure out who he could fight next, Alex Pereira seems to be making sure that the former champion remembers what happened at UFC 320, and even shared a reminder on social media.

Alex Pereira reminds Ankalaev about his loss in their rematch

When Alex Pereira kept saying, “Chama,” Magomed Ankalaev replied with “No chama,” claiming that it was “Ankalaev time.” The 2-time champion certainly did not appreciate that and would go on to shut his opponent up. But in case fans forgot about it, ‘Poatan’ has made sure to keep that KO win fresh in their memories by posting a video of it on his Instagram account.

As a taunt to Magomed Ankalaev, Alex Pereira wrote, “Just to remember CHAMA,” in the captions of that Instagram post. The light heavyweight champion had also dismissed claims that the Dagestan native was injured when he entered the cage at UFC 320, claiming that Ankalaev’s camp was downplaying his status as a top fighter in the UFC. “You can’t give excuses. I had a thousand excuses to say, but waited to say when we were about to fight again. They’re already giving away [excuses] to maybe take away my merits, I don’t know,” Pereira said last month.

Well, there is no word on what’s next for Magomed Ankalaev, but it seems like he will be sitting out for the rest of the year. The UFC has two PPVs remaining for 2025, so he’s most likely to return in 2026. But coming back to what Ali Abdelaziz had to say, do you think Ankalaev deserves a third fight against Alex Pereira? If not an instant rematch, how does he earn one down the line? Drop your comments below.