Ilia Topuria and Alexander Volkanovski may be on good terms now, but their relationship wasn’t always this friendly. Not too long ago, the two were rivals fighting for the featherweight title. They first met at UFC 298, where Volkanovski was deep into his first title reign with five successful defenses.
However, the Australian was also coming off a brutal knockout loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 294. Things only got worse for Volk in Anaheim as Topuria knocked him out, handing him his first defeat at featherweight and taking the 145-pound title in the process.
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The loss was a massive setback for Volkanovski, with many questioning whether he would ever return to his best. The Australian took an extended break before eventually making his way back to the top. Interestingly, Topuria recently opened up about his former rival, showering him with praise while also addressing the possibility of sharing the Octagon with him again.
Ilia Topuria Reveals Why He Refuses to Fight Alexander Volkanovski Again
Volkanovski is currently enjoying his second featherweight title reign after recently defending his belt against Movsar Evloev at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi. However, the Australian has also been vocal about his desire to challenge for the lightweight title, with a potential third attempt at 155 pounds on his mind.
While Volk has expressed interest in a retirement fight against Justin Gaethje, he is also open to running it back with Topuria if Gaethje decides to call it a day. The Spaniard, however, doesn’t seem particularly interested in that matchup.
During a recent interview with Spanish MMA reporter Alvaro Colmenero, Topuria admitted that he has grown so fond of Volkanovski that he wouldn’t want to fight him again.
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He said, “I have so much affection and respect for him that I couldn’t hit him. I like him too much. There are already things I don’t want to do. What for? It would be a very competitive fight, even though I beat him once.”
Topuria also went on to call Volkanovski the greatest featherweight in UFC history, acknowledging just how much the Australian has accomplished in the division.
He said, “For me, he’s the best featherweight that has ever existed, the most dominant. I was the champion, and I’ve done things that nobody else has done, but I left the division. He’s done much more at that weight than I have. It’s been many years.”
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And it’s hard to argue with that assessment. Although Topuria famously knocked out Volkanovski to become champion, he only made one more appearance at 145 pounds, knocking out Max Holloway at UFC 308 to defend his title.
The Spaniard then vacated the belt and moved up to lightweight, where he defeated Charles Oliveira to become a two-division champion. Volkanovski, meanwhile, has spent most of his career at featherweight and recently secured his ninth title-fight victory, surpassing Jose Aldo’s divisional record.
His resume at 145 pounds also speaks for itself. Volk has beaten Aldo, Chad Mendes, Diego Lopes twice, and Max Holloway three times, along with recently getting past Evloev. Considering everything he has accomplished at featherweight, Topuria’s praise for his former rival is certainly well deserved.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
