Morning Report | Daniel Cormier: Magomed Ankalaev may not have beaten Alex Pereira even at '120 percent' |
Yesterday at 14:00 -
Daniel Cormier confirmed that Magomed Ankalaev was injured heading into UFC 320, but it may not have mattered.
This past weekend, Ankalaev put his title on the line against Alex Pereira in their rematch at UFC 320. It went about as bad as it could go for Ankalaev, with "Poatan" finishing him in under 90 seconds. In the aftermath, Ankalaev's team revealed the former champion entered the bout with a broken rib that severely impacted his training. And while Cormier confirmed that to be true, he also doesn't think that made a huge difference in the outcome.
"First off, Magomed Ankalaev did have a rib injury," Cormier said on his YouTube channel. "This is not a lie, this is not an excuse. I know this because prior to the fight, I saw a video of him getting injections into his rib to try to help him get to the fight. He was able to hit pads and do cardio, essentially, for a month and a half before the fight.
"With that being said, I don't know if the result changes if he was healthy, because of the way Pereira fought him. I know some people that are very close to Magomed Ankalaev that said for him not to fight. He wanted to fight. He wanted to go out there and beat Pereira again because he understood how important it was to have a victory over Alex, and two would have been an even stronger statement as to why he is who he is.
"So he was not at 100 percent, but I don't know if he was at 120 percent if he would have beaten Pereira on that night. The way Pereira attacked him, just really was in a fashion that said that he was pissed off and that he wanted the fight to be completely different than it was the first time, and he absolutely did that."
In their first encounter, Ankalaev edged out a decision, landing effective strikes and controlling Pereira along the fence for long stretches of the bout. Afterward, Pereira declared he was only "40 percent" of himself for that battle and vowed to do differently in the rematch. He certainly did, marching Ankalaev down and dropping him almost immediately.
After reclaiming his title, Pereira made it clear that while he will stay at 205 pounds and defend the belt if need be, the fight he wants is a superfight with Jon Jones. It's a fight Jones himself targeted before retiring, and one that Cormier is in on, because it gives Pereira the chance to establish himself as possibly the greatest fighter of all time.
"Alex is 38 years old, so he's probably thinking at this point, 'How do I go and make another statement that I am the guy?'" Cormier said. "Hell, [if] he beat Jon Jones, Alex Pereira — who is already considered one of the greatest fighters of all time in the most expedited timeline I have ever seen — would literally cement himself to almost stand above everyone. Because he would have beaten a former UFC light heavyweight champion and heavyweight champion, and a guy many consider to be the greatest fighter of all time."
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FLAVOR IN YOUR EAR
No Bets Barred.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
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No, never change.
Your name is your name.
Get this man a fight.
For your entertainment.
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FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Fabricio Andrade (10-2, 1 NC) vs. Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu (13-3); ONE Fight Night 38, Dec. 5
FINAL THOUGHTS
On the one hand, I'm kinda with DC — probably wouldn't have matter for Ankalaev against that version of Pereira. On the other hand, pretty hard to win a fight with a busted rib. Still, he accepted the fight in that condition, so Big Ank has to live with that decision. — Meshew
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