Alexander Volkanovski is pulling for Charles Oliveira to defeat Islam Makhachev.
Oliveira takes on Makhachev to win the vacant lightweight title in UFC 280,. Volkanovski made no secret of his desire for a shot at the lightweight title. The featherweight champion stated that he would prefer to face “Do Bronx”, if he had his way.
“I just want my belt. Which do you believe is the larger fight? I think the bigger fight is definitely Charles Oliveira,” Volkanovski recently explained on The MMA Hour. “I think he’s got so much hype on him. We know it’s going to be an exciting fight, he’s so exciting to watch. There’s a reason he’s so exciting to watch.
“Obviously — this isn’t a shot at him, I’ve got a lot of respect for him, but I think a lot of people miss that — they miss the fact that he takes damage. He often loses big fights that are exciting. That’s why they’re exciting. It’s still very entertaining. A lot of people are hyping him up, and again, I want big fights. Charles deserves a larger fight .”
That’s not to say that Volkanovski is opposed to facing Makhachev either. The bottom line is that “The Great” wants to show the world that he can be anything he sets his mind on, and join the ranks of two-division champions.
” If Islam holds that title, then I will fight Islam to get it. It doesn’t matter who it is, I’ll do whatever,” Volkanovski said. “They both have big challenges. They both have different challenges and big challenges, and that’s excites me too. A nice, big challenge, because again, I love when people doubt me. It might take a while before I am considered the underdog in my section. But moving up, there’s going to be a lot of people that think it can’t be done, and I’m going to show them that it can.”
Volkanovski had been trying to win a shot at a lightweight title for quite some time. But coming off his dominant victory over Max Holloway at UFC 276, which vaulted him to No. 1 in MMA Fighting’s pound-for-pound rankings, the champ renewed his calls for a chance at a second belt, even suggesting the fight could happen at the UFC’s rumored return to Australia in 2023.
While he hasn’t been promised anything, Volkanovski believes that he’s in a good spot to get the first crack at the newly crowned lightweight champion.
” These are conversations that you can have but they were never locked down,” he stated. “I am the kind of man that wants to be busy. If it’s not now, it can be later, as well. I’ve always looked at it that way. It’s something we discussed, but it is also something I deserve. I think we’re all on board, and we all think it’s fair, so right now we’re in a good position.”
