Joe Rogan credits Magomed Ankalaev for putting Alex Pereira in uncharted territory at UFC 313.
Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) defeated Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) by unanimous decision to become UFC light heavyweight champion in Saturday’s main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Although he couldn’t take down Pereira a single time in 12 attempts, Ankalaev was the advancing fighter throughout, which allowed him to find success standing.
“Now he’s the UFC light heavyweight champ of the world against the most devastating champion we’ve seen in years,” Rogan said of Ankalaev post-UFC 313. “I mean, it’s really an impressive performance by Ankalaev. He did everything he had to do. He pressured him on the feet, he showed that Pereira has a harder time fighting off the back foot, and he did what had to be done.”
Rogan believes Ankalaev’s strategy helped him shut down Pereira’s devastating offense.
“There was really only a couple of moments where Pereira stunned him – the head kick, there were a couple of other moments where he caught him with good shots, but mostly Ankalaev was controlling the distance, was putting the pressure on him, and we saw ‘Poatan’ fight in what, up until now, is an uncharacteristic position: backing up and avoiding shots.”
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