Magomed Ankalaev calls out unlikely contenders for next UFC fight

Magomed Ankalaev says Pereira and Prochazka turned down fights, sends open invitation to UFC

Following Pereira's 'hacking' debacle earlier this month, Ankalaev alleged 'Poatan' turned down a fight at UFC 317 . Later, it was confirmed that Jiri Prochazka also turned down an opportunity in order to focus on his studies.

In the meantime, Ankalaev has sent an open invitation to the light heavyweight division for his next fight.

"Guys, is there anyone in the Light Heavyweight division who’s willing to fight me?" Ankalaev wrote on X. "Because Jiri and Alex do not want to fight."

This puts Ankalaev in a tricky spot. Viable contenders are slim in the light heavyweight division, with most of the top fighters coming off of losses or having fought Ankalaev in the past.

At this time, the only viable options would be Carlos Ulberg and Dominick Reyes.

1. Alex Pereira; Declined to fight (alleged)
2. Jiri Prochazka; Declined to fight, exams
3. Carlos Ulberg; Eight-fight winning streak
4. Jamahal Hill; Two-fight skid, fights Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC Baku
5. Jan Blachowicz; Fought 'Ank' already, three-fight skid
6. Aleksandar Rakic; Lost to 'Ank,' three-fight skid
7. Khalil Rountree Jr.; Lost title fight at UFC 307, fights Hill at UFC Baku
8. Dominick Reyes; Three-fight winning streak
9. Volkan Oezdemir; Lost to Ulberg in 2024
10. Nikita Krylov; Lost to Reyes at UFC 314, fights at UFC Abu Dhabi
11. Johnny Walker; Lost to 'Ank', three-fight skid, injured
12. Azamat Murzakanov; Undefeated 14-0, fights at UFC 316
13. Zhang Mingyang; 12-fight streak, 3-0 UFC
14. Bogdan Guskov; Two-fight streak, fights at UFC Abu Dhabi
15. Alonzo Menifield; One-fight streak, fights at UFC Atlanta

With each option as unlikely as the next- aside from Ulberg -It's entirely possible fight fans will have to wait a while for the UFC to put on the next big fight for Ankalaev.