Chael Sonnen harshly criticized the decision to exclude Magomed Ankalaev from the vacant light heavyweight title fight. Sonnen pointed out that Ankalaev has a 1-1 record against Alex Pereira and is the only fighter in the division who has actually defeated Pereira. Despite this, Ankalaev was not even considered for the title bout. Sonnen expressed confusion as to why the title fight doesn't feature the division's most exciting fighter Anthony Rountree Jr., the most intriguing Jamahal Hill, or the most credentialed Ankalaev. He concluded that the storyline for the current title fight is so weak that people aren't even talking about the absence of deserving contenders, and stated that both participants are the wrong choices.
