LAS VEGAS: Before Alex Pereira’s loss to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 in March, it looked as if the Brazilian knockout artist had given in to the temptations that come with being the sport’s most marketable fighter.
At times, it became a common joke among fans and fighters about how visible Pereira was during his camp.
At UFC 320 on Saturday, Pereira will get what could very well be the final chance in his storied career to reclaim the light heavyweight title belt. Since Ankalaev (20-1-1, 1 no contest) beat Pereira (12-3-0) earlier this year, some visible bad blood has festered between the fighters in their interactions.
With his reputation at risk and with a fighter who clearly irritates him holding the title he recently elevated to prominence, Pereira steps into the Saturday fight with a hunger that was missing in March. Even if Pereira, 38, blames it on injuries rather than the lifestyle he led in the months before the fight.
After the first bout, Pereira claimed he fought at just 40 percent of his usual capabilities. Ahead of the second matchup, he won’t reveal just how healthy he is, but he made it clear that it shouldn’t be used as an excuse this time around.
“I took this time off to rest, to take care of myself and to heal some injuries,” Pereira said. “I can tell you that I’m going to be very good in this fight. I can’t tell you an exact percentage, but I can tell you I’m going to be doing well.
“I don’t think (I feel a chip on my shoulder). Obviously, I’m here to win. We can’t control everything, but I’m here to win. In the last fight, I wasn’t able to show a lot. This time, I had time to really prepare, and I think I’m going to be able to show everything that I’ve improved and everything I’ve been learning.”
Ankalaev, on the other hand, hopes to wash his hands of the Pereira problem once and for all. Another win for the 33-year-old Russian sambo star would mark 15 consecutive fights without a loss.
Ankalaev’s only career UFC loss came during his debut against Paul Craig in 2018, and it taught him lessons that have made him nearly unbeatable since then. The defeat showed Ankalaev that staying calm is a superpower, and that demeanor proved crucial in his initial victory over Pereira.
“When it comes to my calmness, my calm demeanor, I think it comes from taking the lessons out of that one loss that I had at the very beginning of my career,” Ankalaev said. “I took a specific lesson out of that. I learned things I needed to find from that loss. From then on, I think the confidence comes from preparation and hard work.
“It’s something that every fighter develops as they go through their career. They find that calm in which they can operate during the fight. When it comes to being nervous in front of a certain fight, I can’t say that I’ve never been nervous or I’ve never been shaky. There were fights where, not that I was scared, but it was more responsibility that I felt going in. At this point, for this fight specifically, the reason for the calm is that I went through a really good camp.”
In the co-main event, Merab Dvalishvili (20-4-0) will defend his bantamweight title against Cory Sandhagen (18-5). Dvalishvili defeated Sean O’Malley for the belt at UFC 306 last September and in the rematch at UFC 316 in June, the latter being his 13th consecutive win. Sandhagen has won four of his past five bouts.