Ankalaev Grinds Out Guskov in Abu Dhabi Snoozer: Former Champ Back in the Win Column, But Questions Linger

Ankalaev Grinds Out Guskov in Abu Dhabi Snoozer: Former Champ Back in the Win Column, But Questions Linger

There’s something about a short-notice main event that always feels a little off. One fighter is ready, locked in, training for months. The other gets the call, packs a bag, and shows up hoping the lights and the moment somehow make up for the missing camp. On paper, Magomed Ankalaev versus Bogdan Guskov at UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi on July 25, 2026, had all the ingredients for something interesting. A former light heavyweight champion looking to climb back toward the belt. A dangerous finisher stepping up on short notice with everything to gain. A five-round main event under the Etihad Arena lights. What we got instead was a slow, grinding, often tedious affair that tested the patience of everyone in the building and watching at home before Ankalaev finally put Guskov away with ground-and-pound in the fifth.

It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t exciting for long stretches. But it was decisive enough. Ankalaev walked out with a TKO win at 2:41 of Round 5, improved his record, and reminded everyone that when the fight goes long and the other guy freezes, he’s still one of the most difficult 205-pounders on the planet to deal with. Whether it was enough to force his way back into the title picture is another conversation entirely.

The Buildup: Injury, Opportunity, and a Division in Flux

Let’s rewind a bit. This card was supposed to be Ankalaev versus Khalil Rountree Jr. That matchup made sense. Rountree had been on a solid run and carried the kind of knockout power that could trouble anyone. Ankalaev, coming off a devastating first-round knockout loss to Alex Pereira in their rematch at UFC 320 in October 2025, needed a statement win. The Pereira defeat was his first loss since 2018. It snapped a long stretch of dominance that included winning the vacant title and beating some of the division’s best. Suddenly the former champion was on the outside looking in, with Carlos Ulberg holding gold and a messy contender picture behind him.

Then Rountree got hurt. Less than two weeks out, the fight was in jeopardy. Enter Bogdan Guskov. The Uzbek striker had been scheduled to face Jan Błachowicz in a rematch the following week. Their previous meeting ended in a majority draw, and Guskov was hungry for the chance to settle it. Instead, the opportunity of a lifetime landed in his lap. Main event. Former champion. Short notice. He took it in about 15 seconds, according to his own account. Why wouldn’t he? A win here and the title conversation opens up fast.

Guskov came in on a five-fight unbeaten streak, with finishes in his UFC wins. He’s a pressure fighter with heavy hands and a willingness to throw spinning attacks and high kicks. On paper he presented problems for Ankalaev’s measured, southpaw style. Ankalaev is the more complete fighter—elite striking, excellent wrestling when he chooses to use it, and the kind of fight IQ that lets him control distance and tempo for 25 minutes. But short notice is short notice. Camp matters. Conditioning for five rounds against a guy who can wrestle is different from preparing for three against Błachowicz.

The pre-fight talk was measured. Ankalaev acknowledged the challenge but never sounded worried. Guskov talked about the opportunity and the title path a win would create. The odds reflected reality: Ankalaev was a heavy favorite. The question wasn’t whether he should win. It was whether Guskov could make it competitive or force Ankalaev into the kind of messy, chaotic fight where upsets happen.

Abu Dhabi has hosted plenty of big nights. This one felt like a solid Fight Night card with a main event that carried title implications for one man and a career-altering chance for the other. The crowd showed up. The stage was set. Then the fight started and the energy slowly leaked out of the building.

Styles Make Fights… Until One Guy Stops Fighting

Ankalaev’s game is about control. He uses his length, his southpaw stance, and a varied kicking arsenal to keep opponents at the range he wants. He picks his spots with the left hand. He doesn’t rush. When the wrestling comes, it’s usually decisive because he’s strong in the clinch and heavy on top. Guskov’s best path was to close distance, force exchanges, and land something clean early before the former champion settled into a rhythm. Pressure, volume, and chaos were his friends. Standing at range and waiting was not.

What happened instead was a masterclass in frustration. Guskov never really forced the issue. He stayed on the outside, threw occasional kicks, and largely let Ankalaev dictate the terms. Ankalaev, for his part, was content to chip away, land the cleaner shots, and wait. The result was long stretches of feeling-out, feinting, and low output that had the Etihad Arena crowd booing by the third round.

It’s fair to criticize both men. Ankalaev could have pressed harder earlier. He clearly had the tools to take Guskov down whenever he wanted—he proved that in the championship rounds—but he spent the first three rounds mostly on the feet. Guskov, though, looked frozen. The aggression that defined his previous performances was missing. Whether it was the short notice, the moment, or Ankalaev’s ability to make opponents second-guess every move, the version of Guskov that showed up was not the one who had been climbing the ranks.

Round-by-Round: The Slow Burn and the Inevitable Finish

Round 1 set the tone. Both men came out cautiously. Calf kicks and range-finding jabs. Ankalaev in southpaw, Guskov orthodox. There were moments where the pace picked up slightly—Ankalaev landing a straight left, Guskov trying a switch kick and a spinning attack that missed—but nothing sustained. Ankalaev controlled the center and the distance. Guskov was already reacting more than initiating. It was a clear 10-9 for the former champion, but the kind of round that doesn’t light up a highlight reel.

Round 2 followed the same script. Ankalaev kept closing the distance methodically. Guskov threw feints and the occasional right hand, but he couldn’t back Ankalaev up or force him into exchanges. A late clinch against the fence produced some ineffective dirty boxing. The crowd was already restless. Another round for Ankalaev. The scorecards were building, and the fight was settling into a predictable pattern.

Round 3 is when the boos really started. Ankalaev opened with a high kick. Then both men spent long stretches circling and staring. Ankalaev landed the better left hands and continued to work the legs and body. Guskov’s output dropped further. He looked hesitant, almost resigned. A cut opened near his right eye. The round belonged entirely to Ankalaev, and the atmosphere in the arena reflected the product in the cage. This was not the main event anyone paid to see.

Then the championship rounds arrived and the fight finally changed shape.

Round 4 began with Ankalaev shooting immediately. The takedown was easy. Once on the ground, the former champion controlled from half guard and the back, mixing in ground strikes with rear-naked choke attempts and a neck crank. Guskov defended the submissions well enough to survive, but he was stuck. Ankalaev ended the round in mount. For the first time, the fight had genuine control and damage. The score was never in doubt, but now the finish felt possible.

Round 5 sealed it. Ankalaev shot again early. Guskov tried an anaconda choke on the way down—one of the few moments that generated any real excitement—but Ankalaev worked free and settled into dominant position. From there it was methodical. Side control, then the back. Short punches. Guskov turtled and covered up. Referee Marc Goddard gave warnings. When Guskov stopped offering any meaningful defense or attempt to improve position, Goddard stepped in at 2:41. TKO via punches. The crowd, which had been restless for most of the night, at least got a stoppage.

Ankalaev looked tired in the post-fight interview despite the relatively low output for much of the fight. He thanked Guskov for stepping up when Rountree pulled out and made it clear this was the start of his climb back toward the title he lost. He also put some of the blame for the slow pace on his opponent: Guskov wasn’t engaging in the striking, and Ankalaev had to hunt for him. Fair assessment. Guskov later issued a short statement apologizing to fans who believed in him, promising to learn from it and come back stronger. The five-fight unbeaten run was over.

What It Means Going Forward

For Ankalaev, the win is necessary but incomplete. He’s back in the win column. He showed he can still control a fight against a ranked opponent and finish when the opportunity presents itself. The wrestling looked sharp when he finally used it. The striking, while low-volume, was accurate enough. At the same time, a performance this cautious against a short-notice replacement doesn’t scream “give me the next title shot.” The light heavyweight division remains messy. Ulberg has the belt. There are other names with more recent highlight-reel wins or more compelling narratives. Ankalaev will need another strong performance—preferably a more exciting one—before the path clears again. He’s talked about wanting Pereira again eventually. That trilogy still has heat. Paulo Costa’s name has floated around as well. Whatever comes next, Ankalaev remains a top contender, just not an automatic one after a night like this.

For Guskov, it’s a tough lesson. Taking the short-notice main event was the right call for his career trajectory. The execution simply wasn’t there. He looked like a fighter who never found his rhythm or his confidence. The pressure game disappeared. The finishes that defined his rise never materialized. He’ll need to go back, rebuild, and show that this was an off night rather than a ceiling. The talent is still there. The path is just longer now.

The broader card delivered more action than the main event. Ramazan Temirov’s first-round knockout of Steve Erceg in the co-main stood out. There were submissions and decisions that kept the night moving. But main events set the tone, and this one will be remembered more for what it lacked than what it provided.

In the end, Ankalaev did what he needed to do. He won. He finished. He reminded people that his baseline level is still high. The performance just didn’t silence the questions the way a dominant, early, highlight-worthy win would have. Combat sports is full of nights like this—necessary victories that feel incomplete. Ankalaev moves forward. Guskov resets. The light heavyweight division keeps turning, waiting for the next fight that actually settles something.

For those who stuck through the full 25 minutes, the finish at least provided some catharsis. Marc Goddard’s stoppage may have been the most popular decision of the night. Sometimes that’s just how these things go. The former champion is back to winning. Now comes the harder part: making people care about the next one.