“You can never land an unintentional knee” - Johnny Walker vows to exact "revenge" in upcoming rematch against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC Vegas 84
UFC light heavyweight Johnny Walker will headline the first event of 2024, UFC Vegas 84, against former title challenger Magomed Ankalaev. The two will face off in their rematch at the UFC Apex on January 13, 2024.
Walker and Ankalaev fought at UFC 294 but their fight did not make it past the first round. An illegal knee from the Ankalaev when Walker was down rendered the Brazilian unable to continue and the fight was ruled a No Contest.
In an interview with The Schmo, the No.7-ranked contender vowed to avenge the inconclusive ending of their previous meeting, stating that he is better acquainted with Ankalaev's skillset now:
“One hundred percent. I have some business to deal with [Ankalaev] because the last fight was not the way I expected it to be. I felt him already. I felt everything. I know his power and I have some very big surprises for him.”
Walker also insisted that the illegal knee was intentional and that the Russian was well-aware of his actions. In addition, he believes that a title shot against his compatriot Alex Pereira could be on the cards with a win at UFC Vegas 84:
"Maybe me. I just have to beat Ankalaev first. Whatever it takes, I’ll be ready. I can’t wait to put my hands on him and make him pay. It’s going to be like a little revenge because he landed a bad, illegal knee in Abu Dhabi. He has control of the fight. He knows what he was doing. You can never land an unintentional knee. Your knee doesn’t go in somebody’s face unintentionally, so I’m going to get him. I’m going to get my revenge."
Check out his full comments in the interview with The Schmo below (1:25):
UFC Vegas 84: Who is fighting on the main card?
UFC Vegas 84 will be headlined by the light heavyweight rematch between Magomed Ankalaev and Johnny Walker, but the rest of the main card has very interesting matchups to kick off the year.
The co-main event will feature yet another rematch, this time between flyweights Matheus Nicolau and Manel Kape.
Kape's last loss came against Nicolau at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad in 2021. They are ranked No.5 and No.6, respectively, and will look to climb further up the division.
Veteran lightweights Jim Miller and Gabriel Benitez will also battle it out on the main card, No.13 ranked-bantamweight Ricky Simon will take on unranked fighter Mario Bautista, and a middleweight bout between Phil Hawes and Brunno Ferreira will act as the opener on the main card of UFC Vegas 84.