Instead of leaning into a gimmick or talking wildly online or into the microphone, he chooses to keep his head down and let his performances speak for themselves and so far the opportunities have kept coming. .
“I think I speak with my fists,” Ankalaev said. “I talk with my fights and those people who talk too much end up having to fight me anyway, so I think I mostly talk with my fights.”
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His biggest message may be sent on July 30 but, even then, he’s a little shy to make a big statement about what he wants. Ankalaev is going to let people decide for themselves while he focuses on another epic performance.
This is admirable considering the path many fighters take – stepping into the scene as hard and as spectacularly as possible. For those for whom it works, it works, but Ankalaev demonstrates his devotion to the fight, and beating Smith puts him in the position he’s always wanted: title contention.
“It’s all a bit tangled up there and I think my victory will be the message itself,” Ankalev said. “At the moment I don’t know what’s going to happen because there will probably be a rematch over there at the top, but the thing is with the win here I think it’s enough to say that I deserve the next title.”
