Poatan calls Ankalaev an 'easy fight' in the UFC; Russian reacts and attacks the champion's ancestry. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram/UFC
On the eve of his fight for the UFC light heavyweight belt (up to 93kg), Alex Poatán caused a stir by ranking several fighters on a scale of difficulty. In an interview with 'ESPN MMA', the Brazilian gave scores from 1 to 10, with 1 being the easiest and 10 being the most challenging, for names like Magomed Ankalayev, Jon Jones e Dricus du Plessis.
Poatan placed Tom aspinall e Jon Jones as the most complicated opponents, both with a score of 9. Ankalaev, in turn, received a score of 5, which generated an explosive reaction from the Russian.
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Dricus du Plessis was rated 4, while Khamzat Shimaev, Robert whittaker e Aleksandar rakic received a score of 7. Poatan's own opponent in the UFC 307 next Saturday (5), Khalil rountree, was also rated 7.
Ankalaev rebels against Poatan
Poatan's classification did not go unnoticed by Ankalaev. On his social media, the Russian expressed his indignation with the grade given by the Brazilian.
“This guy says I’m on level 5. He’s in my head. Please don’t miss Saturday. I promise this voodoo won’t work on me. I pray five times a day. I am protected,” Ankalaev wrote defiantly.
The Russian, known for his Islamic faith, appears to have interpreted Alex's classification as a sort of 'curse' and responded with a promise of divine protection. Magomed's response adds a new chapter to the rivalry between the two fighters and raises expectations for the future of the light heavyweight division.
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