Ali Abdelaziz thinks Magomed Ankalaev is the rightful No. 1 contender.
Ankalaev has been passed up for a title shot in favor of Khalil Rountree (13-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC), who challenges light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) in the UFC 307 headliner Oct. 5 in Salt Lake City.
Instead, Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) was matched up with Aleksandar Rakic (14-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC) Oct. 26 at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi.
“Certain fighters have a long road to the title, like Khabib (Nurmagomedov), like Kamaru Usman, like Islam Makhachev,” Abdelaziz told ESPN. “But when they get there, they become dominant. Listen, the UFC has different views about what they want to do with Alex Pereira. They want him for Utah. Magomed Ankalaev will fight in Abu Dhabi, in his market he fights in. Magomed has a new deal he’s very happy with. He deserves a title shot.
“It’s bullsh*t he’s not getting a title shot. ‘He just fought for the title, too.’ This is kind of what the UFC said. But the reality, I believe he’s the best light heavyweight on the planet. I know it, you know it, Dana White knows it, Mick Maynard knows it. Alex Pereira became a big star – you can’t take this away from him. The guy is always game to fight. But every road has an end. Magomed Ankalaev will handle business, Alex Pereira will handle business, and these two guys will fight in 2025.”
Ankalaev is unbeaten in his past 12 fights. He had one crack at the belt when he fought Jan Blachowicz to a split draw in their vacant light heavyweight title fight at UFC 282 in December 2022.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.
