Alex Pereira plans to troll Magomed Ankalaev pre-UFC 313: 'I'm really going to make fun of him'

01/27/2025 05:36 PM

Finally booked to make his return at UFC 313, Alex Pereira has warned incoming opponent, Magomed Ankalaev he will troll and mock him beyond belief — following notable instances of him poking fun at the likes of Israel Adesanya, and recent UFC 311 feature, Jamahal Hill.

Pereira, a former two-weight champion under the umbrella of the organization, is slated to make his return at UFC 313 on March 8. — taking on surging Russian force, Ankalaev in the pair’s overdue grudge fight in Las Vegas.

Sidelined since he most recently defended the belt back in October of last year at UFC 307, Sao Paulo fan-favorite, Pereira most recently landed an eventual fourth round knockout win over title challenger, Khalil Rountree in the pair’s title pairing.

As for Ankalaev, the former vacant title chaser retained his spot at number one in the official light heavyweight rankings at UFC 308 in October to boot, landing a one-sided — albeit forgettable unanimous judging win over fellow European contender, Aleksandar Rakic.

Alex Pereira vows to poke fun at Magomed Ankalaev ahead of UFC 313

Claiming to boot he actually asked the promotion to book him in a title grudge match with Ankalaev, Pereira warned the Brazilian that he would also poke fun at him pre-fight more than any other opponent he has faced during his gold laden tenure with the UFC.

“If he (Magomed Ankalaev) doesn’t back up what he says, people have already seen me making fun of my other opponents,” Alex Pereira told Ariel Helwani for Uncrowned. “Sometimes I joke and stuff, but this is the guy I’m really going to make fun of.”

“He says the company [the UFC] tells me what to do, but I’m the one that asked for the fight,” Alex Pereira explained. “I’m the one that came there and said I want to fight Ankalaev now.”