Magomed Ankalaev needed only one entrance back in the cage to remind the light heavyweight division why he was wearing UFC gold barely a year ago, grinding down late replacement Bogdan Guskov over five rounds before finishing him with strikes on the canvas in the main event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
The stoppage came at 2:41 of the fifth round, referee Marc Goddard stepping in as Ankalaev poured down ground-and-pound on a Guskov who had absorbed increasing punishment through the championship rounds.
It was hardly a vintage headline fight before that final flurry. Ankalaev out-worked Guskov on the feet through the first three rounds and controlled him against the fence and on the mat in the fourth, patiently building toward a finish rather than chasing an early one.
Guskov was a late addition to the card. He stepped in after Khalil Rountree Jr., originally slated to headline opposite Ankalaev, withdrew with an injury less than two weeks before fight night - a short-notice assignment Guskov accepted after, by his own account, few other contenders wanted the fight at all.
For Ankalaev, the win was as much about repairing his own résumé as beating an opponent. He had taken the UFC light heavyweight title from Alex Pereira at UFC 313 last year, only to lose it back inside 80 seconds when Pereira reclaimed the belt by first-round TKO at UFC 320. Saturday's bout was contested at a non-title 205 pounds.
The victory moves Ankalaev's UFC record to 13-2-1, with one no-contest, and 20-2-1 overall - a résumé that still ranks among the deepest in the division despite the Pereira setback.
Guskov's night ended a genuine run. He had gone unbeaten in five straight fights before Saturday, and his only previous UFC loss had come by submission to Volkan Oezdemir back in September 2023. He falls to 18-4-1 overall.
Speaking afterward, Ankalaev thanked his short-notice opponent rather than dwelling on the fight's slow pace. "I want to say thank you to Bogdan for coming in here and saving the fight," he said, acknowledging that without Guskov's willingness to step in, Abu Dhabi would have lost its main event entirely.
Ankalaev then turned his attention to the top of the division, calling out champion Carlos Ulberg for a light heavyweight title shot. Ulberg has held the belt since knocking out Jiri Prochazka for the vacant title at UFC 327 but has been sidelined ever since following surgery on a torn ACL, leaving his return timeline - and the title picture above Ankalaev - unsettled for now.
