Alexander Volkonovski vs Islam Makhachev, 11 days notice, fight, will he be underdone, UFC lightweight championship

Australian UFC champion Alexander Volkonovski has shrugged off suggestions he is heading into his rematch with lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, after agreeing to the fight on just 11 days’ notice.

After Makhachev’s original opponent, Charles Oliveira, withdrew, Volkanovski was quick to put his hand up to replace the Brazilians on the UFC 294 card in Abu Dhabi this weekend.

This will be Volkanovski’s first fight since his victory over Yair Rodriguez on July 9, with the UFC featherweight champion undergoing surgery on his left arm a few days later.

UFC 294: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski 2 | SUN 22 OCT 5am AEDT | Order now with the Main Event on Kayo Sports

Volkanovski was not expected to return to the spotlight until January, when he was scheduled to face Ilia Topuri. Instead, the Australian has now jumped at the chance for the Makhachev rematch, hoping to avenge a defeat at the hands of the lightweight champion earlier in the year.

When asked by Fox Sports’ Niko Pajarillo if he was looking bad for this Sunday’s fight, Volkanovski was honest.

“Compared to where I would be in every other camp, well, I’m not going to lie to everyone and say I’m in exactly the same shape, that’s a complete lie,” Volkanovski said.

“If anyone can do five laps in such a short time, it’s me. I can do five rounds any day of the year, regardless of how long I’m off. I could have a whole year off and I guarantee I could get through all five rounds and be competitive with any man in the world.

“I’m that guy who can do that.”

Volkanovski added that the short-term fight was something “he needed” and that he was ready to “shock the world.”

“I trained myself. Yes, I had surgery, so I couldn’t do much at that time, but as soon as I could come back, he said.

“At the end of the day, I don’t have the preparation, but what do I have? My head is fresh, I am physically and mentally fresh. I’m excited, I’m so free, without any pressure.

“I needed this. It made my head hurt to think that I would have to wait until January. Everything was supposed to happen, I was in my head because I needed to do something and this happened and I tell you, this is all part of my story.

“The world is spinning for me right now and I can’t wait to go out there and shock the world.”

It’s clear that Volkanovski was keen to move up a weight class and fight Makhachev again, but many would have expected that to happen on the track and for the Australian champion to benefit from a stronger preparation base.

However, Volkanovski admitted that these are the kind of challenges he relishes, despite the risk involved and that, based on his recent training sessions, his “body knows” and is ready for this weekend’s fight. end.

“It excites me. I always talk about challenges, and I look at this as a whole other level of challenge. I always said I would do things like this, so I don’t want to be the guy who doesn’t do it when I said I’m the guy I would do,” he said.

“So maybe there was a little bit of ego involved.”

“I accepted the fight with more doubts than today… Now that I’m doing my sessions, well, I’m happy where I am.

“I thought I would be a little more out of shape or more underrated if I took the fight… It’s like my body knows when it’s time and my body knows it. He flipped a switch.

“The day after I found out (about the fight), I ended up breaking records in my weight and conditioning room and my jumping records. I’ve never jumped that high in my entire life.

“It’s like now my body knows you need to turn up the volume… You need extra power, extra explosiveness, extra knockout power, you need everything. It’s like my body just knows how to flip the switch everywhere and now I’m breaking records. It’s pretty crazy.

If Volkanovski manages to pull off an upset and defeat Makhachev, he will become the fourth male fighter in UFC history to hold two belts at once (lightweight, featherweight).