The UFC has a new light heavyweight champion, and it happened in a pretty lackluster main event. Magomed Ankalaev did what he needed to do to dethrone Alex Pereira via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47 ×2).
Pereira was not robbed. Ankalaev was able to neutralize Pereira’s offense, and he used his ability to hold Poatan against the cage to earn the unanimous decision victory.
Pereira took the first round with steady leg kicks and Octagon control. Ankalaev easily claimed the second frame as he turned up the pressure and landed a big punch at the end of the round that wobbled Pereira.
I thought Pereira rebounded well in the third round and won an uneventful frame, but that’s where the judges saw things a bit differently.
All three judges gave Ankalaev the third round.
Ankalaev went to a wrestle-heavy approach, holding Pereira against the cage for most of the round. Ankalaev didn’t do much damage, but he definitely controlled the five minutes.
In the last round, Pereira did the better work, but one judge inconsequentially gave it to Ankalaev.
The MMA world reacted to the title change, recognizing that the result was not necessarily best for business or exciting, but the decision wasn’t horrible. I scored the fight 48-47 for Pereira, but I cannot scream bloody murder over Ankalaev winning.
Here is some of the reaction to the result.
We’ll see what’s next for Pereira and who Ankalaev defends the title against first.
UFC 313: Justin Gaethje Delivers in His Comeback Fight
Justin Gaethje is an unbelievable human being. Gaethje ran his record against Rafael Fiziev to 2-0 with a gutsy performance in the UFC 313 co-main event. After losing the first round, Gaethje bounced back with two big rounds to pull out the unanimous decision win.
Gaethje landed this huge uppercut to drop Fiziev in the second round, and it changed the entire fight.
After the fight, the praise and appreciation for Gaethje poured in on social media.
The win puts Gaethje back on the right track following the devastating KO loss to Max Holloway at UFC 300. It is possible Gaethje could challenge for the lightweight title in his next fight.
Fiziev deserves respect for his performance. He took the fight on 12 days’ notice and performed admirably. He seemed to run out of gas late, and that might have been because he didn’t have a complete camp.
In any case, he should not lose ground in the next UFC rankings. These two rightfully secured the Fight of the Night performance bonus.
Take a look at the results and highlights of every finish below.
UFC 313 Results and Bonus Winners
Main Card
- Light Heavyweight Championship Bout: Magomed Ankalaev def. Alex Pereira via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47×2)
- Lightweight Bout: Justin Gaethje def. Rafael Fiziev via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
- Lightweight Bout: Ignacio Bahamondes def. Jalin Turner via first-round submission (arm triangle)
Bahamondes is becoming one of the more well-rounded lightweights in the world. This sparkling submission earned him one of the performance bonuses.
- Women’s Strawweight Bout: Amanda Lemos def. Iasmin Lucindo via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
- Lightweight Bout: Mauricio Ruffy def. King Green via first-round KO
Ruffy’s spinning wheel kick is one of the most amazing KOs in UFC history and he is a legit star. He earned a performance bonus for this explosive finish.
Preliminary Card
- Flyweight Bout: Joshua Van def. Rei Tsuruya via unanimous decision (30-27×3)
- Middleweight Bout: Brunno Ferreira def. Armen Petrosyan via second-round submission (arm bar)
- Welterweight Bout: Carlos Leal def. Alex Morono via first-round TKO
Early Preliminary Card
- Featherweight Bout: Mairon Santos def. Francis Marshall via split decision (29-28×2, 27-30)
- Middleweight Bout: Ozzy Diaz def. Djorden Santos via unanimous decision (29-28×3)