Ilia Topuria answers Alexander Volkanovski’s rematch callout with surprising response
Credit: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Former UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria answered Alexander Volkanovski’s lightweight rematch callout following UFC 333.
UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski could be on his way back up to lightweight after defeating Movsar Evloev at UFC 333. Volkanovski has repeatedly called for a super fight with lightweight champ Justin Gaethje, ahead of Gaethje’s to-be-announced decision on his fighting future.
If Gaethje opts to fight one more time before hanging up the gloves, a matchup with Volkanovski could come to fruition. But Volkanovski has also called for a rematch at 155 lbs with Ilia Topuria, who lost to Gaethje earlier this year at UFC Freedom 250.
Since their UFC 298 featherweight title fight, Volkanovski and Topuria have exchanged compliments in recent years. But Volkanovski has a chip on his shoulder after Topuria handed him the lone defeat of his featherweight career.
Ilia Topuria answers Alexander Volkanovski’s 155 lb rematch callout
In a recent interview with MMA journalist Alvaro Colmenero, Topuria responded to Volkanovski’s rematch call.
“Honestly, I respect him so much, and I’ve grown so fond of him that I couldn’t hit him,” Topuria said of Volkanovski.
“No, we can’t. There are things I just don’t want to do. What for? It could be a very competitive fight. Just because I beat him doesn’t mean he can’t beat me. Anything can happen. For me, he’s the best featherweight in history, above everyone,” Topuria explained. “The most dominant, the one who has spent the most time there. He’s the best. I was the champion, but only briefly, and then I left.
“Yes, I beat him. I beat Max Holloway. I did things nobody else had done,” Topuria continued. “I knocked him out in a division where he’d never been knocked out…and I left. But looking at his record over all those years, he’s accomplished much more than I have.”
While Volkanovski and Topuria’s careers will likely always be linked, it appears a potential lightweight showdown with Topuria is off the table for the featherweight titleholder’s latest double-champ pursuit.
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