Magomed Alibulatovich Ankalaev (; born June 2, 1992) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. As of October 7, 2025, he is #1 in the UFC light heavyweight rankings and as of March 17, 2026, he is #14 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound 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.
Ankalaev was born on 2 June 1992, in Teletl', a village in the Shamilsky District of Dagestan in Russia, into an Avar family.
Ankalaev first began training in Greco-Roman Wrestling for one year whilst he was a student at the Dagestan State Pedagogical University (DSPU) in Makhachkala, 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 named the 2015 Mixed Martial Artist of Russia by the Russian MMA federation.
In December 2013, in the WMMAA's World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan, Ankalaev won the gold medal, beating Kazakhstani Rustam Malaev in the finals.
In June 2014, at the Russian MMA Championship, Ankalaev ended up beating two of Fedor Emelianenko's students, Valentin Moldavsky in semi-final, and Vadim Nemkov in the finals; thereby qualifying for the WMMAA Championship in Minsk, Belarus, in September of the same year. He went on to win the silver medal.
In March 2015, Ankalaev won the finals of the MMA Cup of Dagestan, by beating Muslim Magomedov. Barely a month later, Magomed Ankalaev won the Russian Cup, by again beating his rival, Muslim Magomedov in the final. One month later, at the Russian MMA Championship, Ankalaev beat 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 the WMMAA World Championship held in Prague, Czech Republic.
In May 2016, Ankalaev won the Russian MMA Championship, by beating Magomed Shakhrudinov in tourney finals. In November of the same year, Ankalaev won the Combat Sambo Cup of Dagestan, and the gold medal in the WMMAA Championship a few weeks later, in Macau, China.
Ankalaev made his professional debut on January 18, 2014, at Oplot Challenge 96, where he beat Vasily Babich of Ukraine by majority decision. In December 2015, Ankalaev won the MMA Super Cup of Russia, by beating Nadyr Bulkadarov in the pro exhibition fight. At Akhmat FC in 2016, he won the 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.
Ankalaev made his promotional debut against Paul Craig in March 2018 at . 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 on September 15, 2018, at . 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 award.
Ankalaev was expected to face Darko Stoà ¡iàon February 23, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 145. However, Stoà ¡iàpulled out of the fight on January 23 citing injury. Ankalaev instead faced promotional newcomer Klidson Abreu. Ankalaev won the fight by unanimous decision.
Ankalaev faced Dalcha Lungiambula on November 9, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 163. He won the fight via knockout in the third round. This fight earned him the Performance of the Night award.
Ankalaev faced Ion CuÃÂelaba on February 29, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 169. He won via a technical knockout in the first round. The win was not without controversy as referee Kevin MacDonald stopped the bout believing CuÃÂelaba was out on his feet while still standing, which CuÃÂelaba immediately protested. The stoppage was heavily criticized by media outlets, fighters, and fans as being premature. Consequently, the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupation Regulation (DPOR) reviewed the fight, denying CuÃÂelaba's appeal to overturn the loss.
A rematch against CuÃÂelaba was expected to take place on August 15, 2020, at UFC 252. CuÃÂelaba then pulled out on August 11 after testing positive for COVID-19 and the bout was rescheduled for UFC Fight Night 175. However, the day of the event, it was announced the fight was once again cancelled after CuÃÂelaba tested positive for COVID-19 for a second time. They eventually faced each other at UFC 254. Ankalaev won the fight via knockout in round one. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.
Ankalev faced Nikita Krylov 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. The fight was later moved to UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi on October 30, 2021. He won the bout via unanimous decision.
Ankalaev faced Thiago Santos on March 12, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 203. He won the bout via unanimous decision.
Ankalaev next faced Anthony Smith on July 30, 2022, at UFC 277. He won the fight via technical knockout in the second round.
Ankalaev fought Jan BÃ Âachowicz for the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight Championship on December 10, 2022, at UFC 282. At first, it was booked as a 3-round co-main event, but then-reigning UFC Light Heavyweight champion Jiri Prochazka pulled out of his title defense against Glover Teixeira due to a shoulder injury and subsequently vacated his title, and the fight between Blachowicz and Ankalaev was changed to a 5-round title fight. The fight ended in a controversial split draw. 23 out of 25 media members scored the fight as a win for Ankalaev.
Ankalaev faced Johnny Walker at UFC 294. The fight ended in a no-contest after an illegal knee by Ankalaev and the cage-side doctor controversially deemed Walker was unable to continue the fight.
Due to the controversial ending, the pair quickly rematched at UFC Fight Night 234 on January 13, 2024. Ankalaev won the fight by knockout in the second round after dropping Walker with a right hand. This fight earned him the Performance of the Night award.
Ankalaev faced Aleksandar RakiÃÂ on October 26, 2024 at UFC 308. He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Ankalaev faced Alex Pereira for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship on March 8, 2025 at UFC 313. He won the championship by unanimous decision. 11 out of 21 media outlets scored the bout for Ankalaev.
Ankalaev faced the former light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira on October 4, 2025 at UFC 320. He lost the championship by technical knockout via punches and elbows in the first round.
Ankalaev is known for a disciplined striking style grounded in his background in Greco-Roman wrestling and Combat Sambo. While many Dagestani fighters lean heavily on grappling, Ankalaev has developed into a patient, counter-striking light heavyweight with a strong emphasis on distance management. He primarily fights out of a southpaw stance and favors clean, powerful straight punches and well-timed kicks, often shutting down opponentsâ rhythm without overextending.
Though his wrestling credentials are strong, Ankalaev rarely rushes to use grappling offensively. Instead, he typically keeps the fight standing, using his takedown defense and balance to keep control of the pace. His approach has been described as calculated, sometimes even conservative, as he prefers to avoid unnecessary exchanges and pick his shots from the outside. That tactical mindset has allowed him to neutralize more aggressive fighters by staying composed under pressure and capitalizing on their mistakes.
Ankalaev lost his father when he was in the ninth or the tenth grade. He, as the oldest son, has three sisters and one brother.
He owns a coffee shop called "Ankl". He is a devout Muslim.
|- |Loss |align=center|20âÂÂ2âÂÂ1 (1) |Alex Pereira |TKO (punches and elbows) |UFC 320 | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:20 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|20âÂÂ1âÂÂ1 (1) |Alex Pereira |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 313 | |align=center|5 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|19âÂÂ1âÂÂ1 (1) |Aleksandar Rakià|Decision (unanimous) |UFC 308 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | |- |Win |align=center|18âÂÂ1âÂÂ1 (1) |Johnny Walker |KO (punches) | | |align=center|2 |align=center|2:42 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |NC |align=center| |Johnny Walker |NC (illegal knee) |UFC 294 | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:13 |Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | |- |Draw |align=center| |Jan Bà Âachowicz |Draw (split) |UFC 282 | |align=center|5 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|17âÂÂ1 |Anthony Smith |TKO (punches) |UFC 277 | |align=center|2 |align=center|3:09 |Dallas, Texas, United States | |- |Win |align=center|16âÂÂ1 |Thiago Santos |Decision (unanimous) | | |align=center|5 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|15âÂÂ1 |Volkan Oezdemir |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 267 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | |- |Win |align=center|14âÂÂ1 |Nikita Krylov |Decision (unanimous) | | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|13âÂÂ1 |Ion CuÃÂelaba |KO (punches) |UFC 254 | |align=center|1 |align=center|4:19 |Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | |- |Win |align=center|12âÂÂ1 |Ion CuÃÂelaba |TKO (head kicks and punches) | | |align=center|1 |align=center|0:38 |Norfolk, Virginia, United States | |- |Win |align=center|11âÂÂ1 |Dalcha Lungiambula |KO (front kick and punch) | | |align=center|3 |align=center|0:29 |Moscow, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|10âÂÂ1 |Klidson Abreu |Decision (unanimous) | | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Prague, Czech Republic | |- |Win |align=center|9âÂÂ1 |Marcin Prachnio |TKO (head kick and punches) | | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:09 |Moscow, Russia | |- |Loss |align=center|8âÂÂ1 |Paul Craig |Submission (triangle choke) | | |align=center|3 |align=center|4:59 |London, England | |- |Win |align=center|8âÂÂ0 |Celso Ricardo da Silva |KO (punches) |WFCA 43 | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:11 |Grozny, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|7âÂÂ0 |Wagner Prado |KO (punches) |WFCA 38 | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:33 |Grozny, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|6âÂÂ0 |Maxim Grishin |TKO (punches) |WFCA 30 | |align=center|4 |align=center|1:13 |Grozny, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|5âÂÂ0 |Artur Astakhov |Decision (unanimous) |WFCA 23 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Grozny, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|4âÂÂ0 |Lloyd Marshbanks |TKO (submission to punches) |WFCA 18 | |align=center|1 |align=center|0:15 |Grozny, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|3âÂÂ0 |Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov |Decision (unanimous) |Oplot Challenge 103 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Moscow, Russia | |- |Win |align=center|2âÂÂ0 |DeniàStrahinja |Decision (unanimous) |Tesla FC 4 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |PanÃÂevo, Serbia | |- |Win |align=center|1âÂÂ0 |Vasily Babich |Decision (majority) |Oplot Challenge 96 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Kharkiv, Ukraine | |-