Russian light heavyweight coach Magomed Ankalaev Sukhrab Magomedov, in a conversation with , appreciated the performance of the current light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, who defended his belt in a fight with Czech Jiri Prochazka at the UFC 303 tournament in Las Vegas.
The 36-year-old Brazilian knocked out Prochazka 13 seconds into the second round with a head kick. This was the second fight between Prochazka and Pereira – they previously met at UFC 295 in November 2023, when the Brazilian also won. The next contender for the UFC championship belt could be 32-year-old Ankalaev, whose unbeaten streak reaches 12 fights.
— Why did you like Alex Pereira?
“He approaches the fight mentally well, has confidence in himself, has good emotional control. Not afraid of punches, not afraid to get up. He lets you work and hits you too.
— Can you explain why Prochazka missed a single high kick in the second round, without preparation, without feints, without any combination?
— Prochazka lost his concentration, nothing worked for him in the first round, and he didn’t come out himself, maybe it’s because Pereira kicked him in the body and threw low blows in the first round. The second round started, Pereira immediately hit him in the head, Prochazka missed the blow.
— Do you respect him as a champion in the -93kg category or do you think he was led to the title?
“As a fighter, he’s worthy of respect, of course. Because he left kickboxing, came to the UFC and became a champion there. That’s worthy of respect. But the truth is that now there’s no good fighters, like Daniel Cormier, Jon Jones and others in that weight, who could compete. So I think he got a little lucky on this one. Magomed and I [Анкалаевым] “We are waiting for an offer from the UFC, I hope they will make this offer and we will fight for the belt,” Magomedov told .
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Source : MatchTV
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
