Magomed Ankalaev’s Manager Eyes Jiri Prochazka Fight as Path Back to UFC Gold
Magomed Ankalaev’s manager recently shared his thoughts on what could be next for Ankalaev. The Russian fighter who dethroned Alex Pereira earlier this year at UFC 313 to become the UFC light heavyweight kingpin lost his crown in the title rematch at UFC 320, with ‘Poatan’ securing a round one knockout victory.
After that fight, Ankalaev claimed that he fought the Brazilian with a rib injury, and because of that, he lost in just 80 seconds.
On the other hand, after becoming a two-time UFC light heavyweight kingpin, Pereira now wants to move up and fight Jon Jones. ‘Poatan’ has his sights set on being the first three-division UFC champion.
In a recent interview with MMAArena, Rizvan Magomedov opined that Ankalaev should fight Jiri Prochazka next. Prochazka has fallen twice against ‘Poatan’. However, after securing back-to-back stoppage victories in 2025 against Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr., he called out Pereira for a third fight.
Since ‘Poatan’ is not inclined to fight Prochazka again, Magomedov thinks a fight between the two former champions would push Ankalaev toward another title opportunity. He said:
“As we’ve seen, Alex doesn’t seem too eager to fight Magomed a third time, but we’ll push for it. Magomed needs to have one fight in between, for example, Jiri. That would be a great stepping stone for the next title shot.”
Check out the comments below:
When Jiri Prochazka called out Alex Pereira for the Trilogy Bout
After brutally knocking out Jamahal Hill at UFC 311 and returning to winning ways, Jiri Prochazka called out Alex Pereira for a third fight. During the octagon interview, he said:
“I took this fight more important than every fight I’ve fought, so I’m very happy with this performance… F*** man, I want a third fight with Alex Pereira.”
Check out Jiri Prochazka’s comments below (2:10):
Notably, Prochazka is undefeated in non-title UFC bouts and has only 2 losses in the promotion, against ‘Poatan.’
