Magomed Ankalaev is looking Alex Pereira a liar for a number of causes forward of their rematch this Saturday.
Ankalaev and Pereira battle for the sunshine heavyweight title in the primary occasion of UFC 320, which takes place at T-Cell Enviornment in Las Vegas. The second assembly has much more warmth than the unique, with a number of issues coming between the 2 fighters.
One in all which was a run-in on the UFC Efficiency Institute, the place Pereira says Ankalaev tried to “conceal” from him – which the 205-pound champion explains by no means occurred.
“After I heard that that’s what he stated, I used to be perplexed,” Ankalaev instructed MMA Preventing by means of a translator. “I used to be confused. Why would he even say that? Should you have a look at the final battle, I bullied him within the battle. I pressured him. He was operating away from me the whole battle. I gained the battle. I grew to become champion. So why would I be hiding from him? So after I noticed the assertion that that’s what he stated, that I hid from him, I simply wished to know from his mouth – why is it that he stated that?
“So I came upon what occasions he’s there, like what time he often involves the P.I. I went and I had a process completed, after which I walked out, and there he was along with his workforce, and I requested him, I stated, ‘You had been on the lookout for me? You stated I used to be hiding. Effectively, right here I’m. You discovered me. So why had been you saying that?’ After which he couldn’t actually clarify himself.
“Then he began doing all kinds of like, ‘I don’t know, the girl stated, the lady stated, any person stated.’ I didn’t even care to hearken to any of that rationalization as a result of there I used to be confronting him proper in entrance of his face, and he had no reply for why he instructed all people that I used to be hiding from him.”
Ankalaev earned his second likelihood to battle for the title at UFC 313 in March, defeating Pereira through unanimous determination to earn his twelfth straight win and lengthen his unbeaten streak to 13 fights.
On Monday, throughout an open exercise scrum in Las Vegas, Pereira stated the explanation why Ankalaev is denying what occurred that day is proof that Ankalaev just isn’t writing his personal tweets on social media.
The sunshine heavyweight champion was requested about his ideas on Pereira’s feedback and clarified the way it all works.
“What’s it that he’s referring to that doesn’t match?” Ankalaev stated.
“I don’t know what he’s referring to as a result of I’m always in communication with my supervisor, Ali [Abdelaziz]. We at all times discuss issues. If any person’s throwing a problem out, or any person says one thing in my path, we focus on it, we hash it out, and we determine what we now have to, after which he places it right into a tweet.
“By no means has he ever written something with out my consent. We’re always in communication. So there’s not one tweet, not one [thing written] that got here out that I wasn’t conscious of that was completed behind my again. We at all times do stuff collectively.”
Ankalaev has been calling for the rematch with Pereira ever since their first battle ended, and he wasn’t shocked the UFC went that path, principally because of the availability of the division’s high contenders.
Whereas Pereira desires to proper the fallacious of their first battle, he says that it isn’t private with Ankalaev, and he has no points with the present titleholder.
On the opposite facet, it’s the alternative.
“Yeah, it’s private to me as a result of that is my belt,” Ankalaev defined. “I’m the champion. I’m being hunted. I’ve to defend my belt, so it’s private to me.
“And in addition [it’s personal], due to the stuff that he stated, issues that didn’t occur, that I hid from him, and all of that stuff that harm me, and I didn’t like that. And so it makes me wish to harm him extra for saying stuff that isn’t true.”
Whereas it appeared like Pereira wasn’t at his very best on the night time of UFC 313, “Poatan” claims he was solely at “40 %” within the bout.
Ankalaev says that he believes Pereira is making excuses, and that’s what makes this rematch so essential to him, in order that he can show to his rival and the remainder of the world that the results of their first bout wasn’t a fluke.
“I don’t know the way ready he was,” Ankalaev stated. “I don’t know why he’s arising with these excuses or no matter he’s arising with. No matter. We gave him one other likelihood; he has one other likelihood. Let’s see 100% [Pereira].”
“Let’s see what he can do when he’s 100%, after which we’ll do a battle and we’ll present him that this time he’s going to say that he was solely [30 percent] prepared.”
With nonetheless a couple of days of actions left earlier than each males get locked contained in the octagon once more, Ankalaev predicts that the rematch goes to look a heck of loads totally different than their UFC 313 encounter.
“I feel it’s going to be a complete totally different battle,” Ankalaev defined. “It’s going to be a really ruthless battle. I feel either side are going to be trying to find a knockout with the intention to make certain to shut this chapter and finish this chapter of the e book.”
