Summary
Poatan celebrates victory at UFC 320. Photo: UFC News / Twitter
Last Saturday (4), in Las Vegas (USA), Alex Poatan knocked out Magomed Ankalaev quickly and thus regained the UFC light heavyweight belt (up to 93 kg). Following this, the Brazilian revealed his desire to venture into the heavyweight division (up to 120,2 kg) to face Jon Jones at UFC Casa Branca , in June 2026, and has already made it clear to the company that his status as champion of the category will be maintained.
Currently, the UFC has been taking a strict stance on champions who want to compete in superfights in different weight classes. For these big fights to take place, the athletes must relinquish their belts to avoid locking their respective divisions. Therefore, for Poatan to face the American, he would have to relinquish the title he just regained without losing it in combat.
However, the Brazilian ruled out any chance of relinquishing the belt. Because he competes consistently, the veteran believes he can convince the UFC to let him face Jones at heavyweight and remain the light heavyweight champion. One thing that may favor Poatan is that, on several occasions, he has helped the company by saving events at the last minute, even while injured and lacking proper training time.
"I don't think it's necessary. Everyone knows how often I fight. So it won't be a problem," said the Brazilian at the post-UFC 320 press conference.
Poatan's next step
Alex Poatan is eyeing a super fight against Jon Jones in the UFC heavyweight division. However, if he remains in the light heavyweight division, the Brazilian is likely to face either Carlos Ulberg or Jiri Prochazka . The New Zealander is ranked third and boasts a nine-fight winning streak. The Czech is a former champion in the division and is currently ranked second. The problem for 'Denisa' is that he has lost twice to the renowned striker via knockout.
It's quite true that the rivalry between the Brazilian and Magomed Ankalaev remains alive and even. However, since the Russian doesn't enjoy prestige within the UFC, he should be discarded, passed over in favor of the athletes mentioned above.
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