Alexander Volkanovski is widely considered to be one of the greatest featherweight the UFC has ever seen. ‘The Great’ was on a phenomenal run in the division. After claiming the title back in 2019 against Max Holloway, he proceeded to defend it five times.
However, Volkanovski’s exceptional run in the division came to an end after suffering a knockout defeat at the hands of Ilia Topuria this past weekend. Coming off a knockout loss at the hands of Islam Makhachev last year in his quest to become the lightweight champion, ‘The Great’ was eager to make a statement at UFC 298.
But that didn’t seem to be the case. Despite starting the fight strongly and being the more effective fighter in the first round, Alexander Volkanovski was caught with a clean right hand by Ilia Topuria in the second round which was enough to knock him out.
As a result, Volkanovski lost the bout via knockout. And Ilia Topuria became the first man to beat him in the featherweight division of the UFC. However, despite suffering a second consecutive knockout inside the octagon, ‘The Great’ has managed to keep his head high. Moreover, he has spoken about wanting to fight Topuria again.
In a statement released on his YouTube channel, Alexander Volkanovski had this to say:
“I definitely want that rematch. Spain is what I’m hearing is gonna happen. Dana wants Spain, obviously, and Ilia wants Spain. That won’t be until later in the year. So obviously the timing would be perfect for me to you know, spend time with the family, look after myself, and then we’ll get back in there and we’ll make it right.”
Catch his comments below:
Is Alexander Volkanovski deserving of an immediate rematch?
The question surrounding Alexander Volkanovski potentially getting an immediate rematch has left the MMA community in splits. Considering the fact that Volkanovski had a dominant run in the featherweight division and defended his belt five times many believe that he should be getting an immediate rematch.
However, on the flip side, many believe that Volkanovski’s recent run of form and losing three out of his last four fights should be enough of a reason for the UFC to give another fighter a shot at the title. That said, it remains to be seen if ‘The Great’ would potentially get an immediate rematch or not.
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