Alexander Volkanovski bounced back from back-to-back losses on Saturday at UFC 314, reclaiming his UFC featherweight title.
Following brutal losses to Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria, fans began to worry about the trajectory of Alexander Volkanovski‘s career.
Despite that, the UFC once again put their faith in the 36-year-old when they booked him to fight Diego Lopes for the vacant title at UFC 314 after Topuria shockingly left the title behind.
Volkanovski went to put on a vintage performance in Miami, picking up the decision win to once again become the king of the 145lb division.
Islam Makhachev reacts to Alexander Volkanovski’s UFC 314 title win
Coming into the bout, fans worried about ‘The Great’ and whether his chin would hold up following brutal recent KO losses.
He and Makhachev had one of the best rivalries in recent MMA history, with their first fight being a razor-close one in Australia. Since then, the two elite-level fighters have had nothing but respect for each other.
Following Volkanovski’s vintage performance over Lopes, the lightweight champion, Makhachev, showed his respect for his former opponent, who, up until this point, has given him his hardest fight in the UFC.
“Congrats legend,” Makhachev said in a post on his social media.
Volkanovski shockingly looking for a return in July
During his time as UFC featherweight champion, the Australian was always one of the most active and was always open about wanting to be in camp because his mental health would diminish whenever he wasn’t.
His relentless activity, though, was the main reason for his devastating downfall, which makes his reclaiming of the title even more impressive, especially considering his age.
Despite the activity recently leading to brutal losses, Volkanovski has revealed that he would like to make the first defense of his second title reign as soon as July, calling upon Movsar Evloev.
“September? If everything is good, I’d probably like to go quicker than that, to be honest. That’s probably the second fight, so if I’m good, maybe I can get a fight in July and then September, we can fit it in, Movsar, if they want to do that, a quick turnaround with Movsar if I don’t have busted hands,” Volk said in the post-fight press conference.
Although the 36-year-old did take some substantial damage against Lopes, he likely hasn’t suffered any broken bones, meaning a return in July is very possible.
