5 Defining Moments: Magomed Ankalaev

The chase goes on for Magomed Ankalaev.

Still in hot pursuit of the Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight title, Ankalaev will take aim at Johnny Walker in a featured UFC 294 attraction this Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The 31-year-old Russian holds a 9-1-1 record across his 11 appearances inside the Octagon. Ankalaev has delivered more than half (nine) of his 17 professional victories by knockout or technical knockout, six of them inside one round.

As Ankalaev moves ever closer to his showdown with Walker at 205 pounds, a look at five of the many moments that have come to define him:

1. Championship Material

Ankalaev laid claim to the vacant World Fighting Championship Akhmat light heavyweight crown when he cut down Maxim Grishin with punches in the fourth round of their WFCA 30 showcase on Oct. 4, 2016 at the Akhmat Fight Club in Grozny, Russia. Grishin checked out 1:13 into Round 4, suffering his first setback in almost five years. A little more than a minute into the fourth round of a thoroughly competitive confrontation, Ankalaev decked his countryman with a crushing left hook to the jaw. As Grishin collapsed to a seated position, he was met with a burst of punches from his relentless counterpart. It was the beginning of the end for the well-traveled M-1 Global veteran. Once Grishin returned to his feet under heavy fire, he ate clean head kick, fell to the canvas for a second time and failed to withstand the barrage of punches that followed. Ankalaev competed twice more under the WFCA banner, then signed with the UFC.

2. Lack of Awareness

The ever-resourceful Paul Craig snatched victory from the jaws of defeat when he put away Ankalaev with a literal last-second triangle choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 127 light heavyweight prelim on March 17, 2018 at the O2 Arena in London. Craig prompted the tapout 4:59 into Round 3. The previously unbeaten Ankalaev dominated all but a few moments of the match. He outlanded Craig 89-34 in total strikes and piled up almost seven minutes of control time. All the work went for naught. Ankalaev pressed his advantages from top position with time dwindling in the third round but forgot to keep his left arm out of harm’s way. Craig clamped down on the exposed limb, transitioned to a triangle and forced the decorated sambo stylist to wave the white flag of surrender in a stunning turn of events. A shocked and dismayed Ankalaev could only sit dejected in the center of the cage.

3. Foot in the Door

Ankalaev flashed some of the brilliance that made him one of Europe’s hottest commodities when he buried former Final Fight Championship titleholder Marcin Prachnio with a first-round head kick and follow-up punches as part of the UFC Fight Night 136 undercard on Sept. 15, 2018 at Olimpiysky Arena in Moscow. Prachnio succumbed to blows 3:09 into Round 1. A measured Ankalaev probed for openings at the start and eventually unleashed his heavy hands, as he staggered the Pole with a perfectly timed counter right hook and floored him with a partially blocked head kick. The blows left Prachnio in no condition to adequately defend himself, as his counterpart chased him to the canvas, sealed the deal with follow-up punches and broke into the UFC win column.

4. Name in Lights

Gorets Fight Team’s Ankalaev took care of business in his first headlining assignment inside the Octagon, as he outstruck and outhustled Thiago Santos to a unanimous decision in the UFC Fight Night 203 main event on March 12, 2022 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Scores were 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47. Ankalaev withstood a second-round knockdown, attacked the head, body and legs with superior output, executed a takedown against the Brazilian and dictated the terms of the vast majority of their exchanges. He was at his best in the championship rounds, where he outlanded Santos by 72-35 margin and compiled more than four minutes of control time. It may not have had the zest Ankalaev desired, but it established him as viable title contender at 205 pounds.

5. So Close, So Far Away

Jan Blachowicz fought to a split draw with Ankalaev in the UFC 282 headliner on Dec. 10, 2022 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Judge Michael Bell cast a 48-47 scorecard for Blachowicz, while Derek Cleary saw it 48-46 for Ankalaev and Sal D’Amato scored it 47-47. Ankalaev set the tone early with crisp punching combinations and punishing front kicks to the body. Blachowicz answered by shifting gears and blowing out the Xtreme Couture rep’s base with vicious kicks to the lower leg. They eventually hobbled Ankalaev to such a degree that he was forced to switch stances. He made the necessary tactical adjustments in the fourth and fifth rounds, where he crowded Blachowicz with pressure, completed multiple takedowns and chipped away with substantial ground-and-pound, all while piling up copious amounts of control time. Ankalaev rose to his feet after Round 5, convinced he had done enough, then left the cage in disgust moments later.