UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski hasn’t completely abandoned his dream of becoming a two-division champion.
Volkanovski, who reclaimed his title earlier this year with a dominant victory over Diego Lopes at UFC 314, has this week dismissed rumours that he has plans to call time on his Hall of Fame career.
In fact, he said that he’d be open to rematches with Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria after he’s taken care of business in the featherweight division.
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The Wollongong icon’s journey toward double-champion status has been far from smooth.
Volkanovski twice challenged then-lightweight king Islam Makhachev, coming up short on both occasions — the second ending in a brutal knockout loss at UFC 294
Months later, Ilia Topuria snatched his featherweight crown at UFC 298 before he moved up to lightweight.
“It’d be great to fight Islam again and Ilia Topruria,” he told Fox Sports Australia.
“I’m just real with knowing that that can’t happen right now. You know, I mean, like me calling for that just doesn’t make sense.
“You need to earn the position, to go for double champ and stuff like that, right? I still know that I’ve got work to do in my division.
“So right now, I don’t want to look too far ahead, because I know if I’m looking at a rematch, we’re talking two, three fights away. So like, why are we even bother thinking about that right now?
“But if it was offered to me today, of course, I would take it.”
Australia’s No. 1 fighter will put his featherweight title on the line against Diego Lopes at UFC 325 next year, marking his first title defence on home soil.
His last outing in Sydney came back in November 2017, when he faced New Zealand’s Shane Young in just his second UFC appearance.
Since then, he has risen to become Australia’s greatest ever MMA fighter and one of the nation’s most beloved athletes.
At 37, Volk isn’t hiding away from the reality every fighter eventually faces: time is no longer on his side — a fact he says he actually appreciates being reminded of.
“I’m 37 years old, so you know you’re going to feel the training,” he says.
“You’re going to feel all of it. You’re probably going to feel weight cuts more. You’re going to probably feel everything a little bit more.
“Because, yeah, I’m not 30 years old. I’m not 28 years old anymore.
“I know that I need to step up. If I want to stay champion, I need to do these things.
“I’m happy with reminding myself that I’m 37 years old. I’m happy because that’s where it gets me. Is like, oh, that’s why we need work harder. That’s why we need to be smart.
“So if you want to know how I get that underdog mentality. It’s easy when you look at it that way.”
Despite the years and miles on the clock, Volkanovski looked incredible in his recent clash with Lopes.
His speed was still there, his reactions were sharp, and his trademark fight IQ was on full display as he dismantled one of the division’s most dangerous fighters.
“I still believe I’m so much better than these guys,” he explained.
“But am I the exact same guy that I was [ten years ago]? No, but – I don’t want to sound like I’m tooting my own horn or anything – but I still believe I can be the best in the world.
“Yes, I do. I still believe I can look like that, even if I decline more.
“I think in a couple of years I can still look that dominant in there, I believe.
“And that’s just because I’m that guy that trains very hard, has the right strategy, fight IQ.
“I think I can go out there and look like I’m as dominant as ever.”
In a lot of ways, Volkanovski almost seems to be getting better as he gets older — not because he’s suddenly faster or stronger, but because he’s smarter than he used to be.
“You can get away with things when you’re younger,” he says.
“Get away with not focusing so much on the recovery. Now you’re focussing on the diet and making sure you’re fine tuning it to make everything a little bit easier.
“It’s the same with laying off alcohol. Like, last camp I didn’t touch the alcohol for 16 weeks. You know what I mean? Not that I’m a massive drinker, but when you’re younger you wouldn’t really worry about it that much.
“But I know now that I need to put in that extra effort again. I’m 37 years old.
“So I need to be clever. I’m a lot wiser in that sense and I know what needs to be done.”
Another 37-year-old former featherweight champion, Conor McGregor, recently announced his intention to chase a “triple crown” and return to the Octagon for the White House card next year.
The Irishman, coming off a five-year hiatus, is reportedly aiming for a welterweight title shot against Islam Makhachev.
Volkanovski couldn’t hide a grin at the prospect.
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“There’s a lot of history there with Khabib and Conor and all that — so maybe something could happen along those lines,” he said.
“No matter who Conor fights, it’s going to be huge. You could do the Chandler fight and it would be massive — and yes, Islam would be even bigger. But we all know it’s not a winnable fight for him.
“I think people would be more intrigued by the Chandler matchup. I’ve got to laugh at it, though, because it’s [the Islam fight] not going to happen.”
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