Russian mixed martial arts fighter Magomed Ankalaev, after nine victories in a row, confidently enters the top of the best UFC light heavyweights. On Sunday night in Las Vegas, an athlete from Dagestan will compete for the champion title. At the UFC 282 tournament, his opponent in the main fight of the evening will be the representative of Poland, Jan Blachowicz.

True, Magomed’s affairs in promotion did not always turn out so well. Before the fight with another Pole, he was on the verge of ending his career. But a brilliant knockout in the first round returned the Russian to MMA.

Contender for the belt

Ankalaev approached the UFC Fight Night 136 tournament in Moscow not in the best mood. In a nearly won fight against Scotsman Paul Craig, he missed out on a last-second victory, losing via rear naked choke.

After such an epic fiasco, the fighter from Russia was close to the end of his career, his defeat hurt him so much. It was the first for Magomed in his professional MMA career and the first in the promotion. Fortunately, the athlete changed his mind and continued to perform in the octagon.

The next opponent of the Russian was a fighter from Poland, Marcin Prahnio. He was predicted a great future after the scandalous departure from ONE Championship. The Asian promotion did not give the athlete a championship fight after four victories in a row, preferring another fighter.

After ONE Championship, Marcin moved to the UFC. But the start of his career in the new promotion, like that of Ankalaev, also did not work out. Prahnio’s rivals have identified the experienced Sam Alvey. The American dealt with the Pole on experience in the first round. The fate of the battle was decided by the heavy blows of Smiling.

Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

“What a blow!”

Two defeats in a row would seriously complicate the career of the loser in the duel between Ankalaev and Prahnio. Few in the UFC got to the heights of the rating after such a start. And many even lose their place in the promotion.

Both fighters were as focused as possible before the start of the confrontation. They started the fight carefully, remembering the sad experience of defeats in previous fights. Moscow spectators saw the first attempt to strike only half a minute after the starting gong. And there was no real action for more than a minute.

Prahnio was the first to seriously kiss, but his low kick did not cause significant damage to Magomed. Ankalaev hit hard in the head with his knee. After that, the rivals continued to grope for the distance, only occasionally investing in blows.

At the end of the round, the Russian fighter failed his opponent, catching him on a sweeping attack. Magomed perfectly hooked the Pole with his hands. Marcin stepped back, but this action became fatal for him: Ankalaev powerfully kicked him in the head. This Pole could not stand it and collapsed on the floor of the octagon. Later, the spectacular moment entered into all sorts of cuts.

– What a blow! Ankalaev ends the fight ahead of schedule! – the UFC social networks accompanied the signature of the video with the knockout of Magomed.

Photo: © Jeff Bottari / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

A powerful hit greatly shocked the Pole. He didn’t get up again. The Russian rushed to finish off the opponent, but after several blows, the referee intervened and stopped the fight.

“I have been preparing for the second fight for a long time. Everything went according to plan. I was not nervous that this was the first tournament in Russia. I don’t care where I perform. The main thing is victory. What’s next? I will prepare and go to the top positions, – Sport24 quotes Ankalaev after the fight with the Pole.

The victory was the first for our fighter in the UFC. After it began the famous series, which continues to this day. Nine opponents in a row were left with nothing. This helped Magomed fulfill the promise he made after defeating Prahnio.