Former contender for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) belt ) Magomed Ankalaev confidently defeated the Brazilian Johnny Walker in the re-match and demanded a title chance from the league management. Sport shares its impressions of the latest success of the Russian light heavyweight and states: even such a victory may not impress the head of the organization, Dana White.
“Well, kid, gotcha?” A remake of one of the most resonant fights of 2023 in the main event of the first event in 2024 is a great gift for fans who miss mixed martial arts. Who would have thought that such enmity would flare up between the modest Ankalaev and the good-natured, smiling Walker? But the events of the first fight (recognized as invalid) provoked a conflict, which gave hype to the second meeting. After all, there is neither right nor wrong: one dealt a prohibited blow to an opponent who was in a “grounded position” and unable to protect his head, the other began to talk nonsense and rush around the cage strangely, which frightened the doctors who came into the octagon.
But today nothing could stop the top light heavyweights from taking out their anger on their opponent. The cage slammed shut, and three months after the scandal in Abu Dhabi, the end to the confrontation was set.
Payback for antics Despite the hostility, the fighters greeted each other in the octagon. And sparks flew! Accented blows and hard work on the legs were diluted with grimaces and unusual feints by Johnny… But the fans became much more worried when Ankalaev unintentionally struck a blow to the groin. Fortunately, the fight continued. And at the break, as it seemed, Magomed left with a lost opening round.
However, it did not come to the second break. The favorite caught the Brazilian with a precise punch from the right and, having cut down the swaggering underdog, also delivered a finishing blow. Walker has his fifth knockout loss in his career, but our athlete has his 18th victory as a professional, a 12-match unbeaten streak, a bonus of 50 thousand dollars… And a serious statement made immediately after a great performance.
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"I prepared for a very long time. He immediately asked for revenge, since he was ready even then. But this is not the most important thing –I want to fight for the belt, I’ve deserved it for a long time. Give me a fight for the belt, said Ankalaev. “Everyone who comes against me wants to find the key.” But not everyone succeeds – I start hunting, and they don’t succeed. I have nothing personal with Johnny, this is our job. It turned out that the first fight was declared invalid – we closed this issue.”
A new test of Polish power? Before we talk about Ankalaev’s future, let’s take a look at the top 5 light heavyweight, where the champion is Brazilian Alex Pereira, who held the belt in the middle division:
Prochaska will fight Rakic at the historic UFC 300 in the spring, and Pereira (as previously stated) is scheduled to make his first defense against Hill. Provided that Ankalaev will have to have one more fight before the “title” (I still can’t believe that the UFC management will give Magomed a chance to fight for the belt immediately after Walker’s declassification – why, promoter Kamil Gadzhiev explained), the only option remains a second fight with Blachowicz. The native of Makhachkala dealt with the Brazilian – all that remained was to replace the Pole, who at first admitted defeat in the first meeting with Ankalaev, but then took back his words and called a draw a fair result.
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