Magomed Ankalaev believes Alex Pereira may have greased in their first fight

Magomed Ankalaev has suggested that Alex Pereira may have been greasing during their first fight earlier this year.

At UFC 313 earlier this year, Magomed Ankalaev defeated Alex Pereira to become the new UFC light heavyweight champion. It was the moment he’d waited his entire career for, and it had finally arrived. Now, at UFC 320 on Saturday night, the two will run it back as ‘Big Ank’ attempts to successfully defend the strap for the first time.

RELATED: Magomed Ankalaev’s coach claims Alex Pereira was greasing in UFC 313 title fight: “He had some substance smeared on him”

In recent weeks, the tension has been building considerably between Ankalaev and Pereira. The two have had a pretty awkward confrontation at the UFC Performance Institute and as we get closer and closer to fight night, we expect to see even more shenanigans arise.

Now, Ankalaev has reiterated previous comments made by his coach regarding the possibility of Pereira greasing in their first fight.

Ankalaev suggests Pereira may have been greasing at UFC 313

“To be honest with you, I went through a lot when I was fighting for the title,” Ankalaev said via a Russian translator, speaking to the media at an open workout in Las Vegas. “That training camp was terrible, I couldn’t wrestle for the most part of the training camp, I was battling a lot of injuries and there was a lot of reasons.

“Also, I told my coach right away during the rounds that I felt like he was greased. He was just too slippery. These things happen in professional sport, I’m not accusing him of anything, but that’s just what I felt. I spar every day, I train every day, you can feel when people are slippery. It’s too much slippery. So I felt he was too greasy and that played a role also.”

Quotes via MMA Fighting