UFC 300 went down this past weekend and the fans are still talking about it. In what was a night that will go down as possibly the best in all of combat sports history, we saw some epic performances. As such, Alexander Volkanovski is seemingly feeling the brunt of its implications.
For those unaware, one of Volkanovksi’s biggest rivals, Max Holloway had a very successful outing at UFC 300. Scoring a buzzer-beating KO of Justin Gaethje to claim the BMF title, Holloway put the entire world on notice. Elsewhere, Alex looked on in support of his former rival, who he was backing coming into the fight.
Whilst Holloway’s latest win came at 155 lbs, the conversation thereafter quickly became about him potentially fighting Ilia Topuria next. Notably, Topuria was cageside watching as Holloway slumped one of the hardest-hitting lightweights. Thereafter, the two have also been trading Bible verses on Twitter, or X as it is now called.
Alexander Volkanovski wants a rematch against Ilia Topuria next
Naturally, all this must seem very disheartening to Alexander Volkanovski who has been eagerly awaiting his rematch against Ilia Topuria. Having lost the title to the indomitable Spaniard at UFC 298 earlier this year, Volkanovski is taking some much-needed time off to recuperate before preparing to fight Topuria. However, with Max Holloway also in the equation now, it must seem a little bit off-putting for Volk.
Recently, the former featherweight champ took to social media to post one of his humorous skits. In the skit, he referred to some of his fights including Islam Makhachev and Brian Ortega. Notably, he also had something to say about Holloway:
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“Mate yeah, the BMF? Blessed Holloway mate, pointing at the ground, let’s go! Last ten seconds knocked him out, I beat that bloke three times.”
Notably, he also closed out the skit by saying: “Anyway, I’ve got a rematch to worry about. I’m gonna go do some training.”
Clearly, he was hinting at the Topuria rematch which some initially felt Alexander Volkanovksi wanted at UFC 305 in Perth, Australia based on his Instagram activity. However, seeing that Ilia was especially keen on bringing the UFC to Spain, it is likely that the promotion will have to negotiate something for the same. With that said, who deserves the title shot -Volk or Holloway? Let’s find out.
Who is more deserving of a title fight- Alexander Volkanovski or Max Holloway?
All things considered, it is clear that either Alexander Volkanovksi or Max Holloway will be the next in line against Ilia Topuria. With that said, the only question that remains is who will be the first one among them to get the opportunity to get their old title back. According to Holloway, he would like to see himself rematch Conor McGregor, seeing that he is active again, sometime in the future.
Moreover, with a win against the #2 lightweight contender, he is also open to fighting Islam Makhachev. However, Makhachev is currently set to face Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 and then Arman Tsarukyan before the end of the year. Thus, he feels that a matchup against Ilia Topuria is likely his next fight. At the same time, Alexander Volkanovski since his defeat has been calling for the rematch which he rightfully deserves.
Seeing that Alexander Volkanovski has made more title defenses (5) than Holloway (3) and is higher on the list of featherweight GOATs, he is the more qualified contender. Moreover, with his reign being one of the best it should not be up for debate that he should be getting the immediate rematch. On the other hand, Holloway has just beaten a lightweight contender so for him to get the title shot off of it, makes less sense anyway.