Alex Volkanovski is the best person to preview and predict the rumored title fight between reigning lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev, and former featherweight titleholder, Ilia Topuria, assuming UFC matchmakers can convince Mackhachev to sign on the dotted line.
He’s not scared, he’s just … bored. Makhachev may also be frustrated that every other champion is getting the opportunity to move up in weight while he’s stuck at 155 pounds. But if and when Makhachev does fight Topuria, he may have to play it “safe.”
“It just comes down to, can Ilia catch him? And he definitely can, especially with his approach,” Volkanovski told Demetrious Johnson on TheMightyCast. “He really knows that he will eventually find the chin and he’s stoic until that happens. He stays on task, even if things aren’t working, he’s still gonna try to find it. I think Islam is gonna be a tough matchup for him because Islam can be quite defensive and safe. I think he knows he’s gonna need to play it safe with Ilia because Ilia is gonna have a puncher’s chance. I just think the later rounds are gonna be very difficult for Ilia.”
Volkanovski (26-4) lost a close decision to Makhachev (27-1) at UFC 284, then got stopped by the lightweight champion in their UFC 294 rematch. Despite repeated warnings of coming back too soon, Volkanovski made a quick turnaround to battle Topuria (16-0) at UFC 298, losing his 145-pound strap by way of second-round knockout.
“But, if Ilia puts hands on anyone, if he traps them, gets them where they don’t wanna be and lands a nice big shot, it’s gonna be game over,” Volkanovski continued. “He can knock out anyone, even in the lightweight division. But yeah, I just believe that probably would be his only chance. Just from what I’ve seen. You hear about him having really good grappling but you won’t know that until you see it at the highest level, then my opinion might change. Until then, I’m going with what I know, and I know he can hit hard. I’ve felt it firsthand. Actually, I felt it — but I don’t remember it.”
Volkanovski returns to fight Diego Lopes for the vacant featherweight strap at UFC 314.
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