Alexander Volkov
Drago
Russia
Will collide with Almeida
Volkov is scheduled to compete against fellow heavyweight Jailton Almeida at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 25, per Guilherme Cruz of MMAFighting.com.
ANALYSIS
Volkov will have another chance to get a shot at the UFC Heavyweight Championship. It looks like his upcoming fight is a title eliminator, with both making relatively reasonable cases for a match with Tom Aspinall. Volkov's previous fight was a controversial decision loss to Cyril Gane, so the former should look to be more decisive come October.
Volkov will have another chance to get a shot at the UFC Heavyweight Championship. It looks like his upcoming fight is a title eliminator, with both making relatively reasonable cases for a match with Tom Aspinall. Volkov's previous fight was a controversial decision loss to Cyril Gane, so the former should look to be more decisive come October.
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Gets no help from judges in defeat
Volkov lost to Ciryl Gane via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 28-29) at UFC 310 on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
It was our first poor decision of the evening, but it came in a massive spot. After getting routed by Gane in a five-round main event between the two back in June 2021, Volkov flipped the script completely. He leaned on his grappling, ultimately landing 3-of-4 takedown attempts. That led to increased openings on the feet, and also resulted in Gane being grounded for nearly all of Round 3 in what everyone assumed was a 1-1 tie. Little did we know, two of the three judges gave Gane Round 2. Volkov was visibly furious on the way out of the Octagon, and UFC President Dana White even came over and spoke to him. That's little consolation for the Alex, who is now 36 years old and sees his four-fight winning streak snapped in the process.
It was our first poor decision of the evening, but it came in a massive spot. After getting routed by Gane in a five-round main event between the two back in June 2021, Volkov flipped the script completely. He leaned on his grappling, ultimately landing 3-of-4 takedown attempts. That led to increased openings on the feet, and also resulted in Gane being grounded for nearly all of Round 3 in what everyone assumed was a 1-1 tie. Little did we know, two of the three judges gave Gane Round 2. Volkov was visibly furious on the way out of the Octagon, and UFC President Dana White even came over and spoke to him. That's little consolation for the Alex, who is now 36 years old and sees his four-fight winning streak snapped in the process.
Gane fight re-scheduled
Volkov (knee) is scheduled to compete against fellow heavyweight Ciryl Gane at UFC 310 in Las Vegas on Dec. 7, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
While a knee injury will prevent Volkov from fighting Gane in October, another four-to-six weeks will be enough for the Russian to recover. He has another few months to try and redeem himself from June 2021, when Gane won their first bout against each other.
While a knee injury will prevent Volkov from fighting Gane in October, another four-to-six weeks will be enough for the Russian to recover. He has another few months to try and redeem himself from June 2021, when Gane won their first bout against each other.
Knee injury causes fight withdrawal
Volkov has a knee injury and will not fight Ciryl Gane at UFC 308 on Oct. 26, Mike Heck of MMAFighting.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Reportedly, the Gane-Volkov rematch has been re-scheduled for UFC 310, expected to take place Dec. 7 in Las Vegas. However, that is not a guarantee, resulting in Volkov's return date being unclear. He may return then but may see his next fight being pushed back until 2025.
Reportedly, the Gane-Volkov rematch has been re-scheduled for UFC 310, expected to take place Dec. 7 in Las Vegas. However, that is not a guarantee, resulting in Volkov's return date being unclear. He may return then but may see his next fight being pushed back until 2025.
Agrees to fight Gane
Volkov has agreed to fight fellow heavyweight Ciryl Gane at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 26, per Alexander K. Lee of MMAFighting.com.
ANALYSIS
After pulling an upset win over Sergei Pavlovich at UFC Saudi Arabia, Volkov will look to shock the world again by defeating Gane. This targeted fight will be the second time Volkov competes against Gane. The first time they fought, Gane handily defeated Volkov via decision at UFC Vegas 30 in June 2021. Gane losing to Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones have proven that he can be defeated though, something that seemed less likely before Bon Gamin and Volkov squared off the first time three years ago.
After pulling an upset win over Sergei Pavlovich at UFC Saudi Arabia, Volkov will look to shock the world again by defeating Gane. This targeted fight will be the second time Volkov competes against Gane. The first time they fought, Gane handily defeated Volkov via decision at UFC Vegas 30 in June 2021. Gane losing to Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones have proven that he can be defeated though, something that seemed less likely before Bon Gamin and Volkov squared off the first time three years ago.
Pulls upset in Saudi Arabia
Volkov defeated Sergei Pavlovich via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
ANALYSIS
If you're looking for a blueprint on how to fight a power puncher, this was it. Knowing full well Pavlovich possessed the power to turn his lights out in an instant, Volkov stood at distance and used his trademark leg kicks and jabs to keep his opponent off of him. In the rare instances in which Sergei was able to get in tight, Alex kept his hands up and made sure Pavlovich wasn't able to land multiple blows. Not only is Volkov huge, but he fights long. That's a skill with which we've seen many taller fighters struggle in the past. Volkov has won four of five dating back to October 2021 and his lone defeat in that span is against an elite opponent in Tom Aspinall. Volkov, who will be 36 years of age in late October, remains firmly in the championship conversation.
If you're looking for a blueprint on how to fight a power puncher, this was it. Knowing full well Pavlovich possessed the power to turn his lights out in an instant, Volkov stood at distance and used his trademark leg kicks and jabs to keep his opponent off of him. In the rare instances in which Sergei was able to get in tight, Alex kept his hands up and made sure Pavlovich wasn't able to land multiple blows. Not only is Volkov huge, but he fights long. That's a skill with which we've seen many taller fighters struggle in the past. Volkov has won four of five dating back to October 2021 and his lone defeat in that span is against an elite opponent in Tom Aspinall. Volkov, who will be 36 years of age in late October, remains firmly in the championship conversation.