Makhachev vs. Volkanovski may be the biggest fight that can be made at 145 and 155, but ‘D.C.’ argues the divisions need to move on.
To rematch or not to rematch, that is the question.
Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski had one hell of a fight at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia. It was so good (and close, according to some fans) that there’s been a lot of talk about running the fight back. Immediately. ASAP.
That doesn’t sit right with Daniel Cormier, who understands issues surrounding double champ status better than most. He held the UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight titles at the same time, and is the only double champ with defenses in two divisions.
In a ‘Tap in or tap out’ segment on his DC & RC show, Cormier explained why he was tapping out on Makhachev vs. Volkanovski 2 … at least for the moment.
“I tap in on the great fight,” he began. “I tap out because Islam’s got work to do in his own weight class and so does Alexander Volkanovski. Volkanovski owes it to Yair Rodriguez to go and give him an opportunity to try to become the undisputed champion of the world. And I don’t know if it’s fair to Beneil Dariush if he beats Charles Oliveira to not get his chance to fight for the lightweight championship of the world.”
“This is the danger in superfights because you get a close superfight and people are clamoring to see it again when in reality we have two divisions that need the champions back in order to really give us a little clarity.”
While Cormier has a point regarding Dariush vs. Oliveira, there’s not as much urgency for Alexander Volkanovski. Following UFC 284, Yair Rodriguez was medically suspended for 180 days, meaning he may not be able to compete again until August. That timeline could actually throw a further wrench into rematch plans as the UFC’s annual Abu Dhabi event goes down around the end of October.
There’s a lot of moving parts when it comes to championship fights in a single division. Add in two champions and an interim champion and it gets even more difficult. If the UFC doesn’t just pull the trigger and rebook Makhachev vs. Volkanovski as soon as possible, it could be difficult for the stars to align to make it happen in the future.