Magomed Ankalaev is running out of patience. Injuries and excuses of fellow light heavyweight contenders continue to frustrate the former champion, who is coming off a stoppage victory over Bogdan Guskov at Abu Dhabi Fight Night on July 25. Big Ank feels he deserves a better deal.
“Looks like nobody in the top five at light heavyweight wants to fight,” Ankalaev wrote on X. “Everybody’s got a reason. Khalil Rountree (is) not ready; Reyes just fought and is injured. Costa wants $10 million.
“So what about heavyweight? Anybody ready to fight? Let’s do it in January.”
Big Ank’s frustration stems from the bottleneck light heavyweight division currently faces.
Following the injury he suffered at UFC 327, reigning champion Carlos Ulberg is currently undergoing a long-term rehabilitation that will likely keep him sidelined for the remainder of 2026. Jiri Prochazka is already booked for the main event at Fight Night scheduled on November 21, 2026.
That leaves Dominic Reyes, Paul Costa, and Khalil Rountree Jr. as top-ranked contenders who could be matched against Ankalaev. But even in their cases, challenges continue to persist.
Rountree was scheduled to face Ankalaev for the main event at UFC Fight Night 282. But the Californian pulled out following an injury, and Bogdan Guskov replaced him on the card. While not confirmed, reports suggest Rountree could return tentatively by late December or early 2027.
Looks like nobody in the top five at light heavyweight wants to fight. Everybody’s got a reason. Khalil Rountree not ready Reyes just fought and is injured. Costa wants $10 million. So what about heavyweight? Anybody ready to fight? Let’s do it in January.
Costa is caught up in a bizarre predicament. The Brazilian and UFC are reportedly involved in a heated dispute over the contract and payouts. Moving up to 205 pounds in April, the Brazilian defeated Azmat Murzakanov on April 11, 2026, and reportedly has only one fight left under UFC.
According to Costa, the last fight involves three rounds. However, if the UFC wants him to fight for 5 rounds, potentially against Ankalaev, then the Brazilian argued he expects a bigger purse.
As the matchup with Costa failed to materialize, Ankalaev expressed his frustration publicly.
“I was being told by my team today that Paulo Costa turned down a fight with me for (the) THIRD time now,” he wrote before adding, “I would turn the fight against me also.”
Notably, this would not be the first time Ankalaev expressed interest in moving up to the heavyweight division.
When Magomed Ankalaev believed he could take on the big boys
Last year, ahead of his first title defense against Pereira on October 4, 2025, the Russian reflected on his future. Confident that he would beat the Brazilian once again, Ankalaev found the idea of becoming a “Double Champ” quite enticing.
“I will keep this belt,” he said in an interview. “I will defend it a couple more times, and then the next step is to go up to heavyweight, be a champ there, and after that maybe my time of rest will come.”
Ankalaev was forced to shelve the plan after Pereira inflicted a crushing defeat, stopping him in the opening round of their UFC 320 headliner.
Ankalaev is not the only light heavyweight who has expressed interest in competing in the heavyweight division.
Following back-to-back losses to Pereira and Prochazka, former champion Jamahal Hill also reflected on moving up to the weight class.
“I’m going to heavyweight,” he reportedly wrote on social media. “That’s the announcement. Breaking news. It’s been something I’ve been working on for a few months, putting on the necessary weight and muscle to move up.
“Wouldn’t it be better if I came back and won the heavyweight title? I think double champ is better than two-time champ. I like the way it sounds. As far as Hokit goes, that’s what I want. That’s exactly the fight I want. He’s not going to get Alex. Alex has no reason to give him that fight.”
Ankalaev might as well follow former opponent Johnny Walker’s example. The Brazilian faced Big Ank twice. While the first bout ended in a no contest, the second went Ankalaev’s way as he defeated Walker via second-round KO.
Following setbacks, including the losses to Volkan Oezdemir and Dominic Reyes, Walker finally made his heavyweight debut on October 3, 2026, against Mick Parkin, winning the fight via first-round KO. Last week he stopped former LFA heavyweight champion Waldo Cortes-Acosta in the third round of their headliner at UFC Vegas 124.
One reason why Ankalaev sounded so determined about joining heavyweight ranks could be the unfinished business with Pereira.
Like Walker, Pereira also moved to heavyweight. However, he suffered a crushing defeat from Ciryl Gane. Pereira is now scheduled to face Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335 next month.
It’s possible, considering the Brazilian’s weak standing Ankalaev feels it is the right time to catch Pereira at heavyweight and set the record straight, which currently reads 1-1.