Alexander Volkanovski reveals interest in fighting for second world title

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is still interested in pursuing a second world title in a different weight class.

At UFC 325 in Australia, Alexander Volkanovski will defend the UFC featherweight championship against Diego Lopes. It will serve as the second time that he has battled Lopes within the last year, having defeated him to win back the belt following Ilia Topuria’s move up to lightweight.

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In terms of what’s next beyond that for Volkanovski, it really depends on how the Lopes fight goes. Many have speculated that he could be contemplating retirement, which wouldn’t be outrageous considering that he turned 37 years of age earlier this year.

Alas, the man himself seems intent on sticking around, and in a recent interview, Volkanovski even suggested that he could go after a world title in a different weight class.

Volkanovski shows interest in second world title push

“I’d love to rematch and get them wins back, like Islam Makhachev or Ilia Topuria, but I’m pretty real with it,” Volkanovski said in an interview with 10 News. “I understand I can’t just call for champ-champ fight right now. I know I’ve got work to do in my division. Being a champion is a responsibility, and I take that seriously. I know I’ve got guys in my division, and I don’t want to hold up the division.

“So, I’m going to do what I need to do and then you never know, maybe after what I’ve said I plan on doing in Sydney, Feb. 1, go do that, and then maybe have the turnaround and then get another victory over an undefeated guy, maybe I think that’s fair enough to be calling for maybe a champ-champ fight then.”

“I’m seeing that everywhere, as well. I don’t know where that came from,” Volkanovski said on retirement rumors. “No, it hasn’t been planned to be my last fight. So, you don’t need to really worry about that. I think you’re just going to take it as it goes from here on, but there’s definitely no plans of that.

“My plans are going out there, not taking too much damage, really setting a statement, and be really impressive in there and maybe get a quick turnaround. Then we’ll see what happens from there. You’ve got a couple of other guys like Movsar (Evloev) and Lerone Murphy, they’re undefeated. For the legacy, they look like they might be pretty good, as well.”

Quotes via MMA Junkie