Alex Pereira Loses Title to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313

Magomed Ankalaev defeated Alex Pereira by unanimous decision to win the light heavyweight title at UFC 313, dominating the fight with his powerful left hand and leaving Pereira running away for 20 minutes. The event was marred by two last-minute fight cancellations and technical difficulties with the ESPN+ streaming platform.

The fight between Ankalaev and Pereira was a highly anticipated one, with Pereira defending his belt for the fourth time. However, Ankalaev's performance was too much for him, and he was left questioning the decision after the fight. Ankalaev mocked Pereira's complaints, saying "he was running away from me" during a press conference. UFC CEO Dana White hinted at a possible rematch, saying "probably".

The event was also affected by the cancellation of two fights, including the bout between Curtis Blaydes and Rizvan Kuniev, which was canceled due to Blaydes' norovirus diagnosis. Another fight, John Castaneda vs. Chris Gutierrez, was also called off due to Castaneda's illness. The cancellations left the event with 10 fights, none of which were from the pay-per-view portion.

The technical difficulties with the ESPN+ streaming platform were a major concern, with many fans, including UFC fighters, unable to get the stream to work. UFC CEO Dana White acknowledged the issue, saying "there were problems buying it on ESPN+". As a result, ESPN+ has made UFC 313 free to watch for anyone with an account, but will not be issuing rebates or refunds to fans who were charged for the event and unable to watch it.

The reliability of ESPN's streaming platform is a concern for the UFC as it prepares to ship around its rights to other providers at the end of 2025. The decision not to issue rebates or refunds has been met with criticism from fans who were forced to make chargeback requests with their credit card companies.