Tomorrow night in the main event of UFC 320, we are going to see a highly anticipated rematch for the light heavyweight title. Arguably the biggest star in the sport, Alex Pereira (12-3), will look to regain the title from the man who took it from him, Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1, 1 NC).
These two men fought for the title back in March and the fight didn’t go as I thought it would. Pereira actually defended all the takedown attempts from Ankalaev, but Ankalaev was able to outland a very tentative Pereira on the feet. It just felt like Pereira was thinking too much about takedowns to strike and Ankalaev took advantage.
Ankalaev won a unanimous decision to become the champion. The win moved Ankalaev to 12-1-1, 1 NC inside the octagon with the lone loss being a submission loss in the final second of a fight to Paul Craig.
Alex Pereira rose to stardom in the UFC with his knockout of Sean Strickland and then dethroning Israel Adesanya to become middleweight champion. After moving to 205, Poatan went 5-0 including 4-0 with four knockouts in title fights before falling to Ankalaev earlier this year.
UFC 320 Prediction
It’s hard not to be a fan of Alex Pereira. Everything about him screams superstar while everything about Magomed Ankalaev flys under the radar. There’s no question as to which fighter the promotion would prefer as their champion.
The big question is, can Pereira show that he truly wasn’t 100% in the first fight and win back the UFC light heavyweight title. Pereira is a fighter who fights best when he is the one fighting with forward pressure. Ankalaev pressured him right out of the gate in the first fight and it felt like Pereira was always reacting instead of acting.
I think forward pressure is going to be key in this one as well and whoever is the fighter moving forward, I think has the advantage. I’m expecting Ankalaev to have more wrestling success in this fight because I think you’ll see Pereira have more urgency with his striking.
Ultimately, I think Ankalaev will retain at UFC 320. I just expect him to stay safe on the feet and he’ll be able to mix in a few takedowns here and there to win at least three rounds. I don’t see an Ankalaev finish happening, but I think he’ll keep his title.
Prediction: Magomed Ankalaev by Decision
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