“I don’t want to sit here and make excuses,” the Australian said at the post-fight press conference following UFC 294. “Of course I’m a big proponent of proper preparation, but I believe in myself, that’s why I made this decision. I could have made a better decision because Islam is not someone to take fights with on short notice, but I needed it.”
“A lot of people say I did it for the money, but the reason is not only that, there is more to it than that. I never thought I would have to deal with this, but when I’m not fighting and I’m not in training camp, it literally drives me crazy. I needed a fight, and when this opportunity came up, I jumped at it.”
“I have a great family, everything is totally fine, but I need to keep busy. I need to be in camp or I just go crazy. When I’m not fighting, I don’t feel like I’m living a full life. I don’t like to waste time.”
The title superfight, in which Makhachev defended his UFC lightweight championship belt, ended at the 3:06 mark of the first round after the Russian knocked Volkanovski down with a leg kick to the head and then finished his shocked opponent in the parterre.