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Scheduled against Topuria
Volkanovski will defend his featherweight title in a matchup with Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 in Anaheim on Feb. 17, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Unsurprisingly, Volkanovski will make his featherweight return to fight the most promising prospect in the division since he became champion. Topuria logged his UFC debut in 2020 and has won each of his six fights since then, the latest being a decisive five-rounder against former interim title challenger Josh Emmett. Volkanovski is coming off a first-round knockout from UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev but will look to prove he is fine at featherweight, a division in which he still remains unbeaten.
Unsurprisingly, Volkanovski will make his featherweight return to fight the most promising prospect in the division since he became champion. Topuria logged his UFC debut in 2020 and has won each of his six fights since then, the latest being a decisive five-rounder against former interim title challenger Josh Emmett. Volkanovski is coming off a first-round knockout from UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev but will look to prove he is fine at featherweight, a division in which he still remains unbeaten.
First knockout loss since 2013
Volkanovski again came up short in his quest to become UFC Lightweight Champion, falling to Islam Makhachev via KO (strikes) at 3:06 of Round 1 at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi.
ANALYSIS
Volkanovski is going to be upset with his performance, but the bottom line is that he accepted this bout less than two weeks ago and was facing arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. We saw how competitive Volk was against Islam with a full training camp under his belt. He didn't have such a luxury here, and one can't help but think that played a factor in the result. After all, his last prior knockout loss came on May 10, 2013. Before stepping in here against Makhachev, Alex was announced for a featherweight title defense against Ilia Topuria this coming January. Volkanovski stated in his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier that he wants to remain as active as possible and fully intends on sticking to that Topuria bout. Although the back-to-back defeats to Islam are disappointing, the truth of the matter is that no fighter at 145 pounds has threatened Volk in several years, and he remains by far the best featherweight in the world today.
Volkanovski is going to be upset with his performance, but the bottom line is that he accepted this bout less than two weeks ago and was facing arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. We saw how competitive Volk was against Islam with a full training camp under his belt. He didn't have such a luxury here, and one can't help but think that played a factor in the result. After all, his last prior knockout loss came on May 10, 2013. Before stepping in here against Makhachev, Alex was announced for a featherweight title defense against Ilia Topuria this coming January. Volkanovski stated in his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier that he wants to remain as active as possible and fully intends on sticking to that Topuria bout. Although the back-to-back defeats to Islam are disappointing, the truth of the matter is that no fighter at 145 pounds has threatened Volk in several years, and he remains by far the best featherweight in the world today.
Set for rematch against Makhachev
Volkanovski will fight Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 in Abu Dabi on Oct. 21, Aaron Bronsteter of TSN.ca reports.
ANALYSIS
Volkanovski's lone loss in the UFC came at the hands of Makhachev at UFC 284 in February. Eight months later, Volkanovski will get a second chance at the lightweight title after Charles Oliveira was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Volkanovski's lone loss in the UFC came at the hands of Makhachev at UFC 284 in February. Eight months later, Volkanovski will get a second chance at the lightweight title after Charles Oliveira was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Remains featherweight king
Volkanovski successfully defended his UFC Featherweight Championship on Saturday, defeating Yair Rodriguez via TKO (punches) at 4:19 of Round 3 at UFC 290 in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
It was another flawless performance from Volk. Apparently seeing a hole the size of the Atlantic Ocean in Rodriguez's grappling game, the champ fired off a dozen takedown attempts in the fight, landing seven. Those seven successful tries resulted in 7:13 worth of control time, and that was the main reason Alex finished with a 149-57 edge in total strikes landed. The number of potential challengers for Volkanovski at 145 pounds appear to be dwindling by the day. He's essentially cleaned out the division already. Look for Ilia Topuria to potentially be next in line. It probably wouldn't do great in terms of Pay-Per-View buys, but it would be an intriguing fight. Otherwise, Volkanovski may look to move up and challenge at lightweight once again.
It was another flawless performance from Volk. Apparently seeing a hole the size of the Atlantic Ocean in Rodriguez's grappling game, the champ fired off a dozen takedown attempts in the fight, landing seven. Those seven successful tries resulted in 7:13 worth of control time, and that was the main reason Alex finished with a 149-57 edge in total strikes landed. The number of potential challengers for Volkanovski at 145 pounds appear to be dwindling by the day. He's essentially cleaned out the division already. Look for Ilia Topuria to potentially be next in line. It probably wouldn't do great in terms of Pay-Per-View buys, but it would be an intriguing fight. Otherwise, Volkanovski may look to move up and challenge at lightweight once again.
Unification bout agreed upon
Volkanovski has verbally agreed to face Yair Rodriguez in a unification bout for the UFC Featherweight Championship at UFC 290 on July 8 in Las Vegas, Brett Okamoto of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
Volkanovski fell short in his bid to become a two-division champion back in February but still put up an outstanding effort against arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC in Islam Makhachev, even though the end result was his first loss under the UFC banner. His time away from the 145-pound division led to the UFC scheduling an interim title belt, where Rodriguez submitted Josh Emmett to become the temporary featherweight champion. Now, the belts will be unified, and despite a solid run by Rodriguez of late, Volkanovski projects to be a betting favorite as high as (-400) or greater in some sportsbooks. Both fighters are excellent on the feet, but it's the wrestling game where Volkanovski will have a major advantage, as Rodriguez defends takedowns at a mediocre 63 percent clip. Volkanovski is five inches shorter, which is the case most times he fights, but both men have an identical reach.
Volkanovski fell short in his bid to become a two-division champion back in February but still put up an outstanding effort against arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC in Islam Makhachev, even though the end result was his first loss under the UFC banner. His time away from the 145-pound division led to the UFC scheduling an interim title belt, where Rodriguez submitted Josh Emmett to become the temporary featherweight champion. Now, the belts will be unified, and despite a solid run by Rodriguez of late, Volkanovski projects to be a betting favorite as high as (-400) or greater in some sportsbooks. Both fighters are excellent on the feet, but it's the wrestling game where Volkanovski will have a major advantage, as Rodriguez defends takedowns at a mediocre 63 percent clip. Volkanovski is five inches shorter, which is the case most times he fights, but both men have an identical reach.