Magomed Ankalaev ended Alex Pereira‘s light heavyweight reign on Saturday night, capturing the championship by unanimous decision in the main event of UFC 313 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The judges scored the bout 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47 for Ankalaev.
Ankalaev (21-1-1) won his 14th striaght fight, while Pereira (12-3), ESPN’s No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter, lost his belt after three successful title defenses in 2024.
Ankalaev, known for his background in combat sambo, largely avoided level changes or takedown attempts in the first three rounds and tried matching Pereira in the striking game.
Pereira made him pay early on, targeting Ankalaev’s lead leg with a series of low kicks in the opening round that had the challenger visibly limping as he walked back to his corner.
The fight continued to stay on the feet in Round 2, with Ankalaev having more success with his strikes, including a front kick to the body that stung Pereira and a counter right hand that had the champion stumbling backward. As the round came to a close, Ankalaev caught Pereira with a big left hand clean on the chin, rocking the champion backward against the cage.
Ankalaev opened the fourth round by wrestling the champion against the cage and mixing in short strikes. Pereira managed to break away, but Ankalaev quickly re-engaged and controlled him against the cage before the referee separated the two fighters with two minutes to go in the round. Although he didn’t absorb much damage, Pereira’s energy level appeared to be fading as he struggled to get free from Ankalaev.
With the fight likely close heading into the final round, Ankalaev remained the aggressor and dictated the pace as Pereira fought off his back foot. Pereira landed a kick to the head and stung Ankalaev with a hard right with just over a minute left. Ankalaev quickly wrapped Pereira up and wrestled him against the cage and largely held the champion there until the final bell sounded.
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