Alex Pereira believes Magomed Ankalaev wanted no part of a casual run-in at the UFC Performance Institute. The light heavyweight contender accused the champion of deliberately avoiding him less than three weeks before their rematch at UFC 320 in Las Vegas.According to Pereira, members of his team overheard UFC PI staff allowing Ankalaev to leave a separate area only after he had exited the facility. For Pereira, that incident solidified his perspective that Ankalaev is not fit for the role of champion.The Brazilian did not confront him at the PI but expressed frustration at what he perceived as evasive behavior from the Dagestani. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Pereira said:"Something funny happened just now when I was leaving the PI. I saw Ankalaev's coach there. I stayed to myself, I didn't see Ankalaev there. And the funny thing is, when I left the PI, when I got into my car, someone from my team was still inside, and he heard the girl from the PI say to Ankalaev, 'He can come now, he's already left.' Like, damn, he was hiding. They hid the guy in a little room, man. The guy thinks I'm going to run into him and start fighting. Do I look stupid, bro?"He added:"This guy talks nonsense. I hadn't even seen [his posts on X], for real. Honestly I would've handled it way better. But the fact that the guy hides in a room because I'm in the same place as him. He's a chump. He's a chump. I'll keep to myself, you know? I'll never pick a fight with the guy, never start something. Of course, unless he comes at me. I have to defend myself too. But what kind of champion is that man? A sh*t champion. I know that's harsh, but he's a sh*tty champion, man."Check out Alex Pereira's comments below:The two men are scheduled to headline UFC 320 on Oct. 4 at T-Mobile Arena. Pereira will attempt to regain the 205-pound belt after losing it to Ankalaev in a unanimous decision at UFC 313 in March.Dan Hardy points to Alex Pereira’s hesitation in first fight against Magomed AnkalaevAs UFC 320 approaches, debate continues around Alex Pereira’s approach in his first fight with Magomed Ankalaev. MMA analyst Dan Hardy suggested that Pereira showed too much hesitation in their initial meeting, allowing Ankalaev to dictate the pace.The former UFC analyst believes Pereira needs to close the distance and apply forward pressure. Speaking in an interview with Helen Yee, he said:"I think maybe he had a little bit too much respect for Ankalaev in the last fight. I also think he wasn't quite sure which hand Ankalaev was going to play. Ankalaev is very, very confident as a striker. His wrestling has always been a backup in his game, and he's never particularly wanted to use it too much. But just the idea of it being there, the threat, it seemed to make Pereira kind of hesitate a little too much."