What a night it was for UFC fans at UFC 313 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main event delivered an intense five-round war between Alex Pereira and Magomed Ankalaev. In the end, Ankalaev secured the biggest victory of his UFC career, defeating Pereira to become the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. The fight was so monumental that UFC stars like Khabib Nurmagomedov, Islam Makhachev, and others shared their reactions.
Pereira started strong in the first round, but as the fight progressed, he began to slow down while Ankalaev gained momentum, ultimately winning by unanimous decision.
UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov congratulated Ankalaev on X, writing: “Congratulations Brother @AnkalaevM you made a history 👏 it was amazing performance against very tough opponent.”
Congratulations Brother @AnkalaevM you made a history 👏 it was amazing performance against very tough opponent.
— khabib nurmagomedov (@TeamKhabib) March 9, 2025
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion also congratulated the new champion, Magomed Ankalaev, writing: “Congrats to @AnkalaevM, beautiful pressure. Most of people dont like it, but you won the title for now. @AlexPereiraUFC, last dance?”
Congrats to @AnkalaevM, beautiful pressure. Most of people dont like it, but you won the title for now.@AlexPereiraUFC, last dance ?
— Jiri BJP Prochazka (@jiri_bjp) March 9, 2025
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Ariel Helwani also pointed out that the UFC will now face a growing star power issue, as some of its biggest names are no longer champions. While he credited Ankalaev with his victory, he emphasized that Poatan is arguably the most popular active fighter in the UFC.
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Another belt goes to Dagestan, Russia
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) March 9, 2025
Congratulations brother @AnkalaevM
Excellent performance 🏆 pic.twitter.com/0EXgPWo9el
Islam Makhachev congratulated Magomed Ankalaev, celebrating another UFC title for Dagestan, Russia.
Another belt goes to Dagestan, Russia
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) March 9, 2025
Congratulations brother @AnkalaevM
Excellent performance 🏆 pic.twitter.com/0EXgPWo9el
Magomed Ankalaev Fires Back At Alex Pereira
Ankalaev fired back at Alex Pereira after the latter questioned the outcome of their UFC 313 title fight. Pereira claimed Ankalaev stalled too much against the fence and didn’t do enough to deserve the win, warning that rewarding such tactics could lead to dull fights.
Responding in his post-fight press conference, Ankalaev dismissed Pereira’s complaints, insisting he was the aggressor while Pereira spent most of the fight avoiding him.
“I was confident. I kept on moving forward. kept pressuring him. And he kept running away from me, you know. For 20 minutes, this guy was running away from me. And then I heard at the end of the fight, he was saying that, you know, he wasn’t sure why the victory wasn’t given to me. Who’s supposed to be given the victory?“
The fight was highly entertaining, keeping fans on the edge of their seats. Now, all eyes are on a potential rematch between Pereira and Ankalaev, which could take place by the end of the year.
Also Read: PHOTOS: New UFC Ring Girl Took The Internet By Storm Showing It All Off At UFC 313
