Magomed Ankalaev has made it clear he wants a third fight with Alex Pereira, even after Pereira’s move to the heavyweight division.
Ankalaev defeated Pereira by unanimous decision at UFC 313 to end Pereira's light heavyweight title reign, but Pereira evened the score with a first-round TKO win in their rematch at UFC 320. With the series now tied 1-1, Ankalaev is openly pushing for a rubber match.
"I will be chasing that fight," Ankalaev said, "no matter if it takes place at heavyweight or light heavyweight. Although he moved up, so I'm not just focusing on him as I have some business to finish in the light heavyweight division."
He believes a trilogy would have strong appeal: "But at the end of the day, as long as he's not retired, I'm sure the UFC would be interested. We are 1-1. I won the first fight, and it's fair to say it was domination. I lost the second one, but it was just an accident. So, I think the third fight should be very exciting for the fans. Time will tell."
Before any potential third clash with Pereira, Ankalaev is scheduled to face Bogdan Guskov in the main event of UFC Fight Night 282 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Ankalaev enters that bout with a 21-2-1 professional record, while Pereira sits at 13-4 and Guskov at 18-3-1.
