Magomed Alibulatovich Ankalaev (russian: Магоме́д Алибула́тович Анкала́ев; born 2 June 1992) is a Russian professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

, who currently competes in the

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruis ...

division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

(UFC). As of January 24, 2023, he is #2 in the UFC light heavyweight rankings. Ankalaev is the former Light heavyweight champion of World Fighting Championship Akhmat. He is also the winner of 2016 Akhmat FC Light Heavyweight Grand Prix.

Early life

Ankalaev was born on June 2, 1992 in

Makhachkala Makhachkala ( rus, Махачкала, , məxətɕkɐˈla, links=yes),; av, Махӏачхъала, Maħaçqala; ce, ХӀинжа-ГӀала, Hinƶa-Ġala; az, Маһачгала, Mahaçqala; nog, Махачкала; lbe, Махачкъала; ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

in the family of Avar descent. Ankalaev first began training in Greco-Roman Wrestling for one year whilst he was a student at the

Dagestan State University Dagestan State University (russian: Дагестанский государственный университет) is a public university in Makhachkala, Republic of Dagestan which is a federal subject in the Russian Federation. It is one of th ...

, where he graduated in the sport faculty. At that time he also competed in combat sambo, where he was honoured with the title of Master of Sports in the discipline. Ankalaev was compelled at the idea of transitioning to MMA, because of the similarity between MMA and combat sambo. Ankalaev then became the Russian and World champion in amateur MMA. Ankalaev was also named the 2015 Mixed Martial Artist of Russia by the Russian MMA federation. Ankalaev is a devout Muslim.

Mixed martial arts career

Amateur MMA & combat sambo career

In December 2013, during the WMMAA's World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan, Ankalaev ends up winning the gold-medal by beating Kazakhstani Rustam Malaev in the finals. In June 2014, at Russian MMA Championship, Ankalaev ends up beating both of Fedor Emelianenko's students like, Valentin Moldavsky in semi-final, and Vadim Nemkov in the finals; thereby qualifying for WMMAA Championship in Minsk, Belarus. In September of the same year, at WMMAA's World Championship hosted by the city of Minsk, Ankalaev manages to win only silver medal for his effort. In March 2015, Ankalaev wins the finals of MMA Cup of Dagestan, by beating Muslim Magomedov. Barely a month later, Magomed Ankalaev wins the Russian Cup, by again beating his rival, Muslim Magomedov in the final. One month later, at Russian MMA Championship, Ankalaev beats his old rival Valentin Moldavsky via split decision in the final, to win the gold medal. In November 2015, Ankalaev won the gold-medal in WMMAA World Championship held in Prague, Czech Republic. In May 2016, Anakalaev won the Russian MMA Championship, by beating Magomed Shakhrudinov in tourney finals. In, November of the same year, Ankalaev wins the Combat Sambo Cup of Dagestan. Few weeks later, in the same month, Ankalaev won gold-medal in WMMAA's Championship held in Macau, China.

Early career

Ankalaev made his professional debut on 18 January 2014, at Oplot Challenge 96, where he beat Vasily Babich of Ukraine by majority decision. In December 2015, Anakalaev wins MMA Super Cup of Russia, by beating Nadyr Bulkadarov in the pro exhibition fight. At Akhmat FC he was the winner 2016 Akhmat FC Light Heavyweight Grand Prix. After winning the Chechen MMA promotion World Fighting Championship Akhmat's world title he signed with the UFC in October 2017.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Ankalaev made his promotional debut against

Paul Craig Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chr ...

in March 2018 at UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Volkov. Ankalaev dominated the fight for the majority of the bout, winning with clean striking, takedowns and top control; Ankalaev had Craig badly hurt with a body kick in the first round. However, in the last five seconds of round three, Craig caught Ankalaev with a triangle choke, giving him his first professional loss at exactly 4:59 of round three. Rebounding from this loss, Ankalaev was scheduled to fight

Marcin Prachnio Marcin Prachnio (born July 14, 1988) is a Polish mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional mixed martial artist since 2013, Prachnio has also competed in ONE C ...

on September 15, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Oleinik. After a slow start, Ankalaev landed a right hook counter that knocked down Prachnio, who then got up, only to then be hit with a head kick and follow up punch which rendered him unconscious. The knockout earned Ankalaev his first UFC win and

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

award. Ankalaev was expected to face Darko Stošić on February 23, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 145. However, Stošić pulled out of the fight on January 23 citing injury. Ankalaev instead faced promotional newcomer

Klidson Abreu Klidson Abreu (born 24 December 1992) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist competing in the Heavyweight division of Professional Fighters League. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Mixed martial arts career Earl ...

. Ankalaev won the fight by unanimous decision. Ankalaev faced Dalcha Lungiambula on November 9, 2019, at

UFC Fight Night 163 UFC Fight Night: Magomedsharipov vs. Kattar (also known as UFC Fight Night: Zabit vs. Kattar, UFC Fight Night 163 and UFC on ESPN+ 21) was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on November 9, 201 ...

. He won the fight via knockout in the third round. This fight earned him the ''

'' award. Ankalaev faced

Ion Cuțelaba Ion Nicolae Cuțelaba (born 14 December 1993) is a Moldovan professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Born and raised in Chișinău, Cuțelaba began train ...

on February 29, 2020, at

UFC Fight Night 169 ''UFC Fight Night: Benavidez vs. Figueiredo'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 169'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 27'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 29, 2020 at Chartway Arena in ...

. He won via a technical knockout in the first round. The win was not without controversy as referee Kevin MacDonald stopped the bout believing Cuțelaba was out on his feet while still standing, which Cuțelaba immediately protested. The stoppage was universally considered early by the event announcers, MMA pundits, and UFC fighters alike. Moreover, the Virginia athletic commission is expected to review the controversial stoppage and they will decide if the result remains unchanged or if it is considered to change it to an overturned NC. A rematch against Cuțelaba was expected to take place on August 15, 2020, at

UFC 252 ''UFC 252: Miocic vs. Cormier 3'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 15, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United St ...

. Cuțelaba then pulled out on August 11 after testing positive for COVID-19 and the bout was rescheduled for

UFC Fight Night 175 The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. However, the day of the event, it was announced the fight was once again cancelled after Cuțelaba tested positive for COVID-19 for a second time. They eventually faced each other at

UFC 254 ''UFC 254: Khabib vs. Gaethje'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 24, 2020 at the du Forum on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Background The event proceeded ...

. Ankalaev won the fight via knockout in round one. This win earned him the ''

'' award. Ankalev faced

Nikita Krylov Nikita Andreyevich Krylov (born March 7, 1992) is a Ukrainian-Russian mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2012, he has also competed for M-1 Global. As ...

on February 27, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 186. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Ankalaev was scheduled to face Volkan Oezdemir on September 4, 2021, at

UFC Fight Night 191 ''UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Till'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 191 '' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 49'' and ''UFC Vegas 36'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 4, 2021 at the ...

. The fight was later moved to

UFC 267 ''UFC 267: Błachowicz vs. Teixeira'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 30, 2021, at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Background This event took place ...

in Abu Dhabi on October 30, 2021. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Ankalaev faced

Thiago Santos Thiago Santos de Lima (born January 7, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently signed to the Professional Fighters League (PFL), competing in the light heavyweight division. Prior to signing with the PFL, Santos competed for the U ...

on March 12, 2022, at

UFC Fight Night 203 ''UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Ankalaev'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 203'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 61'' or ''UFC Vegas 50'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 12, 2022 at the U ...

. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Ankalaev next faced Anthony Smith on July 30, 2022, at

UFC 277 ''UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 30, 2022, at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, United States. Background A UFC Women's Bantamweigh ...

. He won the fight via technical knockout in the second round.

Title contention

Ankalaev fought

Jan Błachowicz Jan Maciej Błachowicz (; born 24 February 1983) is a Polish professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Cham ...

for the vacant

UFC Light Heavyweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

on December 10, 2022 at UFC 282. The fight ended in a controversial split draw. 23 out of 25 media members scored the fight as a win for Ankalaev.

Championships and accomplishments

Amateur MMA/combat sambo

* World MMA Association (WMMAA) ** World Cup ** World Championship ** World Championship ** World Championship * Russian MMA Union ** Russian MMA Championship ** Moscow Open Cup ** Super Cup of Russia ** MMA Cup of Dagestan ** Russian Cup: North Caucasian Federal District ** Russian MMA Championship ** Russian MMA Championship * Combat Sambo ** Combat Sambo Cup of Dagestan

Pro mixed martial arts

(Three times) . ** Second longest win streak in UFC Light Heavyweight history (9) *World Fighting Championship Akhmat **WFCA Light Heavyweight Champion (One time) ***One successful title defense **2016 Akhmat FC Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament Winner *Russian MMA Union **MMA Super Cup of Russia 2015

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ankalaev, Magomed 1992 births Dagestani mixed martial artists Living people Sportspeople from Makhachkala Russian male mixed martial artists Russian sambo practitioners Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Avar people Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling Russian Muslims