Islam Makhachev’s coach expects Alexander Volkanovski will “take more chances” in upcoming rematch at UFC 294
Islam Makhachev’s head coach Javier Mendez has given his thoughts on what Alexander Volkanovski may do differently at UFC 294.
Next weekend, on short notice, Alexander Volkanovski will step in for the injured Charles Oliveira and challenge Islam Makhachev for the UFC lightweight championship. It will serve as his second attempt at claiming Makhachev’s belt following a close decision defeat earlier this year.
Volkanovski, as you can imagine, has earned a great deal of praise for his decision to make the jump up and battle Makhachev on such short notice. At the same time, many wonder how prepared he is for such a mammoth challenge.
In a recent interview, the aforementioned Javier Mendez gave his thoughts on how ‘The Great’ will approach this fight.
Mendez predicts Volkanovski’s plan
“He’s going to do more,” Mendez said. “He’s going to take chances. He’s going to take more chances than last time. He’s not going to be worried about the takedowns, because he’s obviously survived the ground last time, and he also did his best work on the ground, not in the standup. So he’s not going to be afraid of anything. And that’s the one thing I feel he’s going to do, is he’s going to come, and he’s going to come throwing.
“He’s not going to be too cautious. He’s just going to come because he feels he can handle whatever it is when he has to throw. But we’ll see. I mean, you can feel whatever you want to feel, but when you’re in there, it’s not what I think, it’s not what you think, it’s not what anybody thinks, it’s what these two are going to do. And can they handle it? I’m saying yes, but who knows.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
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Alex Volkanovski Islam Makhachev Javier Mendez UFC
