Alex Pereira to defend UFC 313 title against Magomed Ankalaev

Alex Pereira will defend his fourth UFC light heavyweight title against top-ranked opponent Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 on March 8.

The 37-year-old Pereira most recently defended his championship last October by defeating Khalil Rountree Jr. via knockout. Furthermore, Ankalaev has won 13 straight fights and is fresh from his victory over Johnny Walker and Aleksander Rakic.

After the fight reveal, which happened during UFC 311, Pereira said: “I did say that I wanted to take a break, but I start training again, I start feeling good… I start seeing my evolution. So I call my managers right away and I say, ‘I wanna fight. I wanna fight in March. I wanna fight Ankalaev.”

He added: “I know he keeps saying that I’m just an employee of the UFC, I fight whenever they want. But I asked for him. I told them when I wanna fight.”

In a social media post, Pereira stated: “See you soon Ankalaev”

See you soon Ankalaev

— Alex “Poatan” Pereira (@AlexPereiraUFC) January 19, 2025

With three knockouts and three title defences, Pereira finished 2024 with 3-0.

Moreover, the lightweight bout between Justin Gaethje and Dan Hooker will be the co-main event of UFC 313 in Las Vegas. Gaethje wants to recover from his loss to Max Holloway in April, but Hooker has won three straight fights.

Gaethje remarked: “Coming off a knockout, I’m really excited to get back to training… When you take a loss like that, as competitive as we are, then it lights a fire under your a** and we’re getting back to work.”

Source: Eurosport