Alexander Rakic ‘that damn good,’ says Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen is warning everybody to not discredit Aleksandar Rakic.

Rakic (14-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC) takes on streaking high contender Magomed Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) in a pivotal mild heavyweight conflict Oct. 26 at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi.

Ankalaev was handed up for a title shot after the promotion paired mild heavyweight champion Alex Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) with Khalil Rountree (13-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) within the UFC 307 headliner Oct. 5 in Salt Lake Metropolis. Sonnen thinks Rakic is greater than able to stealing Ankalaev’s thunder, though he’s coming off a knockout loss to Jiri Prochazka at UFC 300.

“You’ve obtained Ankalaev, clearly the No. 1 contender, a minimum of based on you guys,” Sonnen mentioned on his YouTube channel. “And you recognize what? I do have a bit of little bit of an issue with that. It’s not an enormous downside, however I do have just a bit one, which is Rakic is that rattling good. You’ve obtained to know: Rakic didn’t get a world title combat – properly neither did Ankalaev, however Rakic did discover himself within the subsequent neatest thing.

“He’s in a No. 1 contender’s match. That’s fairly actually the subsequent neatest thing that you might get to a title combat, and he discovered himself there coming off of a loss. As a matter of truth, he discovered himself there coming off of a stoppage loss. As a matter of truth, discovering himself on this spot truly strikes him in entrance of the man that he suffered the loss to in Prochazka.”

Rakic had returned from an nearly two year-long layoff on account of damage when he confronted Prochazka this previous April. He was capable of wobble Prochazka on quite a few events however was finally overwhelmed and stopped. Sonnen thinks ring rust and cardio seemingly performed a consider his loss.

“I’m solely telling you this as a result of that’s how good Rakic is, and lots of people have forgot,” Sonnen continued. “Rakic regarded good the evening he misplaced to Prochazka, however he regarded like a man who had been out for a minute of time. His conditioning wasn’t going to be proper the place he needs it, and there was no solution to manufacture that.”