Alex Pereira vs. Magomed Ankalaev main event is still happening — but not at UFC 310

Jesse Holland is among the longest-tenured media professionals in the combat sports news space, covering MMA, professional wrestling and boxing on a full-time basis since early 2004.

Reigning UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira is still expected to defend his 205-pound strap against No. 1-ranked title contender Magomed Ankalaev, but their five-round showdown will not be a part of the upcoming UFC 310 pay-per-view (PPV) card on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

That’s according to a new report at MMA Fighting.

Instead, “Poatan” will kept on ice until some point in early 2025, which means the promotion will have to look elsewhere for a UFC 310 main event.

The original headliner, Belal Muhammad, was forced to withdraw from his welterweight title fight against Shavkat Rakhmonov after suffering a grisly toe infection.

Multiple fighters have campaigned for the open slot in hopes of scoring an interim title fight against the undefeated “Nomad,” but the promotion has remained tight-lipped about its plans for next month’s lineup. As of this writing, the plan is to rebook Muhammad vs. Rakhmonov just as soon as Muhammad gets back on his feet.

And off the (other) needle.