Alexander Volkanovski says all the pressure is on Makhachev at UFC 294: ‘You better do something about it’

VolkanovskiAlexander Volkanovski says all the pressure is on Islam Makhachev come UFC 294. In a blockbuster announcement made by UFC CEO Dana White earlier this week, Volkanovski will step into the main event slot on October 21 after Makhachev’s original opponent, Charles Oliveira, was forced to withdraw after sustaining a nasty gash over his right […]

Volkanovski

Alexander Volkanovski says all the pressure is on Islam Makhachev come UFC 294.

In a blockbuster announcement made by UFC CEO Dana White earlier this week, Volkanovski will step into the main event slot on October 21 after Makhachev’s original opponent, Charles Oliveira, was forced to withdraw after sustaining a nasty gash over his right eye during a sparring session.

With 11 days’ notice, ‘The Great’ will look to live up to his moniker as he once again meets the reigning lightweight world champion in a rematch that fans have been clamoring to see ever since their Fight of the Year contender at UFC 284 in February.

“We were told about Charles pulling out and needing a backup,” Volkanovski said on his YouTube channel. “They hit me up yesterday, we said, obviously, alright, let’s do it. Obviously, did the negotiations, they did that, I just said, ‘Yeah. Make sure it’s worth it (laughs),’ and let’s do it.

“This is obviously a pretty crazy thing to do. There’s not many fighters out there who probably would do this, especially in my position, but I always say that I will do these things, I am that guy that will do any time, anywhere, any weight, whatever it is. This is just an opportunity to prove that once again” (h/t MMA Fighting)

Alexander Volkanovski is Ready to Shock the World at UFC 294

Volkanovski and Makhachev have remained adamant that their paths would cross again after their incredibly close encounter in The Land Down Under, but nobody expected it to happen so soon.

“I didn’t want to wait and now I don’t have to wait at all,” Volkanovski said. “It’s pretty crazy but I think it’s all meant to be. This just adds to the story. Even that close fight we had, this just adds to the story. Me going over there to Abu Dhabi, him with a full camp, all of this stuff.”

Despite going into a fight without a full camp against the No. 2 ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Alexander Volkanovski is feeling as confident as ever and believes all the pressure will be on his opponent come fight night.

“I get to shock the world. I can’t wait to go out there and do it,” he added. “That fight made me a better fighter anyway. Honestly, my training after that and my takedown defense, all that, my scrambling ability, the way I understand the ground. I’ve always had that but I learned so much from that fight and I carried that through in obviously my last camp and after.

“Let’s go out and finish this guy,” he concluded. “No pressure on me, baby. No pressure at all. All the pressure’s on him. I’m coming off the couch. You better do something about it.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov addresses UFC 294 title fight fallout: ‘If King Kong can make 155, bring this guy here’

Khabib Nurmagomedov addresses UFC 294 title fight fallout if King Kong can make 155 bring this guySet to feature in the camp of teammate Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 294, former lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov appears to be taking things business as usual, despite the withdrawal of Charles Oliveira, and the short notice entry of Alexander Volkanovski atop the card. Nurmagomedov, a former undisputed lightweight champion and recent Hall of Fame […]

Khabib Nurmagomedov addresses UFC 294 title fight fallout if King Kong can make 155 bring this guy

Set to feature in the camp of teammate Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 294, former lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov appears to be taking things business as usual, despite the withdrawal of Charles Oliveira, and the short notice entry of Alexander Volkanovski atop the card.

Nurmagomedov, a former undisputed lightweight champion and recent Hall of Fame inductee, will return to the training camp of close friend and training partner, Makhachev for the remainder of his preparations ahead of UFC 294 next weekend. 

Hoping to prepare his compatriot for a title fight rematch against Oliveira, a certain spanner was thrown into the works for the Abu Dhabi card overnight, with Makhachev now facing featherweight champion and pound-for-pound kingpin, Alexander Volkanovski on short notice, after the Brazilian suffered a cut in training, requiring medical attention and ruling him from his own championship rematch.

Khabib Nurmagomedov backs Islam Makhachev to beat all comers at UFC 294

Addressing the short-notice switch around just 10 days out from Makhachev’s return, Nurmagomedov claims a host of lightweight contenders – and even King Kong could stand opposite Makhachev, and the outcome would land in favor of the incumbent champion.

“Okay, this is the situation, brother,” Khabib Nurmagomedov told Anatomy of a Fighter. “Islam (Makhachev) is a world champion, right now. If somebody can make 155 (pounds), and the UFC say this guy is a contender, who cares? It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter who. If King Kong can make 155 (pounds), okay, bring this guy here. It doesn’t matter.”

“I told Ali (Abdelaziz), and I know Islam (Makhachev) today, ‘Brother, it doesn’t matter, you’re the world champion,’” Khabib Nurmagomedov explained. “Volk (Alexander Volkanovski), Charles (Oliveira), (Dustin) Poirier, Justin (Gaethje), it doesn’t matter, brother. Like, it’s supposed to be Charles okay, he pull out. But we already beat him. And we don’t care about this. If they [the UFC] want Volk again – first fight it was very good, very competitive fight, but we know, and they’re team know we win a unanimous decision. It was not even split decision, it was unanimous decision. Yes, Volk was looking good on that fight, but he lose. …”

Do you agree with Khabib Nurmagomedov’s assessment of UFC 294?

Breaking – Charles Oliveira out, Islam Makhachev now set to fight Alexander Volkanovski in UFC 294 title rematch

Charles Oliveira out of UFC 294 fight due to cut Islam Makhachev set to rematch Alexander Volkanovski on short noticeDana White revealed that Charles Oliveira is officially out of his highly anticipated rematch with Islam Makhachev in Abu Dhabi on October 21. The UFC CEO broke the news on Tuesday evening during a press conference following the latest episode of Dana White’s Contender Series. White confirmed that Oliveira was forced to pull out of […]

Charles Oliveira out of UFC 294 fight due to cut Islam Makhachev set to rematch Alexander Volkanovski on short notice

Dana White revealed that Charles Oliveira is officially out of his highly anticipated rematch with Islam Makhachev in Abu Dhabi on October 21.

The UFC CEO broke the news on Tuesday evening during a press conference following the latest episode of Dana White’s Contender Series. White confirmed that Oliveira was forced to pull out of the bout after sustaining a nasty cut over his right eye during a sparring session.

“Round 5 of sparring last night, before he’s supposed to jump on a plane today, splits his eyebrow wide open. Had it stitched up last night. Obviously can’t fly out here with that,” White said.

“They didn’t call us. We would have had him go to a plastic surgeon. They would have sewed it from the inside out, get that thing done the right way. These guys never call us like they should when something happens. They call us after they get it stitched up. On the flip side, too, I could see him not wanting to risk it, getting a shot like this.”

‘The Great’ Steps Up and Takes Charles Oliveira’s Spot

With Oliveira officially out and the UFC 294 headliner in disarray, White confirmed that he only had to make one phone call to fill the slot. Stepping up to the plate on 11 days’ notice will be reigning featherweight world champion Alexander Volkanovski.

“This is how we do it, brother,” White said. “One fight falls out and we end up making a fight — it’s one of the most anticipated rematches ever in that weight class.”

Volkanovski and Makhachev delivered a Fight of the Year contender during their first meeting at UFC 284 in February. Eight months later, the pair will run it back with the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ once again putting his lightweight title on the line.

“The Volkanovski crew, him and Israel [Adesanya], these guys are absolute studs, man,” White added.

Unfortunately, that’s not the only blow that UFC 294 has taken over the last 24 hours. Reports recently surfaced suggesting that Paulo Costa could be out of his co-main event clash with Khamzat Chimaev after undergoing elbow surgery a few short weeks ago. The promotion is said to have already reached out to Marvin Vettori to step in, but ‘The Italian Dream’ is said to have declined the offer.

Alexander Volkanovski Replaces Charles Olivera to Face Islam Makhachev at UFC 294

Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira was forced to withdraw from his 155-pound title fight against reigning champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 on…

Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira was forced to withdraw from his 155-pound title fight against reigning champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 on…

Joe Rogan touts Alexander Volkanovski as UFC’s No. 1 P4P fighter: ‘[Makhachev] lost that fight’

Alexander VolkanovskiLongtime UFC commentator Joe Rogan believes featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski belongs at the top of the promotion’s P4P rankings. Since making his UFC debut in 2016, few fighters have been as dominant as Volkanovski. Despite that, ‘The Great’ finds himself firmly posited in the No. 2 spot in the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings following a contentious […]

Alexander Volkanovski

Longtime UFC commentator Joe Rogan believes featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski belongs at the top of the promotion’s P4P rankings.

Since making his UFC debut in 2016, few fighters have been as dominant as Volkanovski. Despite that, ‘The Great’ finds himself firmly posited in the No. 2 spot in the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings following a contentious loss to reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 in February. Volkanovski suffered a unanimous decision defeat in his bid to become a two-division titleholder, but many fighters and fans believe he did more than enough to dethrone the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ in The Land Down Under.

That includes popular podcaster Joe Rogan who firmly believes that Alexander Volkanovski deserved to have his hand raised and as a result, belongs at the time of the coveted P4P list.

“He’s No. 1 pound-for-pound,” Rogan said on his podcast. “They have him as not pound-for-pound [No. 1 in the UFC] because he lost that fight [to Islam Makhachev]. I think you could make a real argument that he won that fight. I think he won the fight. In my mind, he won the fight” (h/t MMA Fighting).

The way Rogan sees it, ‘The Great’ did a better job of imposing his will and delivering damage throughout the five-round affair.

“He did more damage,” Rogan said of Volkanovski. “I think he imposed his skill set. It’s also insanely impressive that he goes up from [featherweight] to fight a massive [lightweight]. That guy is as big at [155 pounds] as anybody is, and at the end of the fight, [Volkanovski] is on top beating him up. He drops him, gets on top of him and had massive moments throughout the fight.”

Joe Rogan Believes Charles Oliveira Will Benefit From Volkanovski’s Performance Against Islam Makhachev

On October 21, Makhachev will return to defend his title against Charles Oliveira in a long-awaited rematch between the pair. ‘Do Bronx’ came up short in their 2022 meeting, suffering a second-round submission, but after seeing Volkanovski take Makhachev to the limit, a blueprint for success against the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ could give Oliveira an advantage when it comes to reclaiming the 155-pound title.

“You kind of see vulnerability in Islam after that fight with Volkanovski,” Rogan explained. “First of all, you see how good Volkanovski really is. F*cking animal. [But] it sort of gives an air of vulnerability with Islam where before people were like, ‘This guy’s unstoppable.’”

Following Oliveira’s incredibly impressive bounce-back victory against Beneil Dariush in June, Rogan expects a much different ‘Do Bronx’ come UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi.

“Looking at Charles versus Beneil Dariush, it’s like he’s back,” Rogan said.