Alexander Volkanovski speaks out following UFC 298 loss to Ilia Topuria: “I think I deserve that rematch”
Alexander Volkanovski has reacted after being knocked out by Ilia Topuria in the main event of UFC 298 this past Saturday night.
Volkanovski had been hoping to shake off his first-round head kick knockout loss to reigning UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev last year. Unfortunately for “The Great,” he ended up suffering back-to-back KO losses for the first time in his pro MMA career. Volkanovski isn’t interested in wallowing in his sorrows, however.
The now former UFC featherweight champion is planning to dust himself off, and he’d like an immediate rematch with “El Matador.”
Alexander Volkanovski Addresses UFC 298 KO Loss, Wants Another Fight With Ilia Topuria
Volkanovski spoke to reporters following his defeat against Topuria. Despite being in unfamiliar territory with two straight finishing defeats, “The Great” says he still has confidence in himself as an elite 145-pounder (h/t MMAJunkie.com).
“He caught me,” Volkanovski said. “That’s that. I felt good in there. I felt like I saw everything early, but he ended up catching me. I was pretty comfortable in the first round. Then we started to do more. I was just about to do more and he caught me. That’s just the game. I’m pretty confident we were probably even up through then, but that’s just the game.”
“… You can’t take anything away from Topuria. If he puts a hand on you like that, you’re going to go down. I don’t care. That’s just that. That was a clean right hand. I think no matter who you are, if you let one of those land on your chin while you’re caught there, you’re probably going down. … I won’t take nothing away from him. I won’t sit there and say, ‘It was this. It was that.’ I felt great. Camp was great. I felt good in there.”
Ultimately, Volkanovski shared his belief that he deserves an immediate rematch with Topuria given how long he reigned as the featherweight champion, as well as everything he’s done for the UFC.
“Obviously, I’ve been a champ for a long time,” Volkanovski said. “I want that rematch. That’s something that needs to happen. I’ve been reigning champ for how long? I’ve been a company man. I’ve backed up on short notice and fought Max (Holloway) three times. You name it, I’ve done it. I’ve been champ for a long time, so I think I deserve that. It’s going to be different next time.”
