UFC legend warns Alex Pereira against making a big mistake in pursuing immediate rematch with Magomed Ankalaev
03/30/2025 04:43 PM
UFC Hall of Famer Chael Sonnen believes Alex Pereira is making a massive error in running it back with Magomed Ankalaev.
Alex Pereira‘s UFC light heavyweight title reign came to a screeching halt at UFC 313 earlier this month. Magomed Ankalaev, after months of trash talk towards the superstar Pereira, backed up his words with action as he defeated Pereira by unanimous decision.
It was a stunning defeat for Pereira despite entering the matchup as being perceived as the arguable underdog against Ankalaev. While the fight was tightly contested from start to finish, Ankalaev had the bigger moments and got the nod on all of the judges’ scorecards.
Almost immediately after UFC 313, talks of an immediate rematch between Pereira and Ankalaev ramped up. The two sides have verbally agreed to a second fight later this year, but according to one UFC legend, Pereira doesn’t make a strong case for redemption.
Chael Sonnen questions Alex Pereira for pursuing Magomed Ankalaev runback
During a recent interview with Submission Radio, Chael Sonnen weighed in on Pereira seeking an immediate rematch with Ankalaev after UFC 313.
"I'm a very big Alex Pereira fan, on a personal level but also his work inside the cage," Sonnen said of Pereira. "I gotta tell you, there is nothing within that first fight, whether illness, injury, or a combination of both, there was nothing about that first fight that would lead a reasonable analyst to believe you're going to have a different outcome in the second fight. …
"That first fight was four to one. It was four rounds to one. It really was not overly competitive. There were some [good] things done by Pereira, such as stopping the takedowns,” Sonnen continued. “We didn't know he had this ability. It was a pretty slow pace and there wasn't a lot done. I'm just suggesting there was nothing we saw, even at a slow pace, even at a drawn down action-packed night or lack thereof, there's nothing to believe that rounds six, seven, eight, nine, and 10 are going to be any different.” (h/t MMA Fighting)
Sonnen went on to highlight the gains that Ankalaev could make from the first Pereira clash.
"Whatever it is that Pereira is supposed to have learned in that job experience, why would we not believe an equal amount would be learned by Ankalaev?” Sonnen shared. “Whatever we're supposed to believe that Pereira gained to do a better job next time, why do we not believe that Ankalaev also [learned]? Ankalaev is the one that had his takedowns stuffed. So in theory, he's the one that would have felt and know where the adjustments are to get the big guy off his feet. And once he gets him on the ground, I can't imagine that's where the judges are going to see it [Pereira's] way."
Pereira began his UFC light heavyweight title reign by defeating Jiri Prochazka for the then-vacant title at UFC 295. After winning the belt, Pereira made a strong case for ‘Fighter of the Year’ in 2024, defending the title three times in six months.
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Alex Pereira hit back at Magomed Ankalaev’s coach’s cheating allegations
The past bad blood between Pereira and Ankalaev reignited after rematch talks persisted. Ankalaev’s coach accused Pereira of greasing at UFC 313, using an unspecified ‘ointment’ to make grappling exchanges more difficult for the title challenger.
As of this writing, there’s no direct evidence that Pereira attempted to gain an unfair advantage at UFC 313. He stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedown attempts.
Pereira responded to the coach’s assertions by countering the claims as ‘excuses’ for Ankalaev failing to take him down. Entering the fight, Ankalaev was predicted to utilize his wrestling well against Pereira, but it turned into a clinch and striking-heavy battle.
