Alex Volkanovski Names The Two Men Most Likely To Challenge Him Next
Alex Volkanovski captured the UFC featherweight title by defeating the former champ Max Holloway at UFC 245, and then again earlier this month at UFC 251, via controversial split decision.
The Australian champion is currently on a nine-fight win streak in the UFC, having lost only once in his entire professional MMA career.
Who Could Be The Next Challenger?
Now the question is, who deserves the next shot at Volkanovski’s featherweight title. Speaking to Sky Sports Radio (transcript by BJPenn.com), the 31 year old named the two men he sees as the most likely to challenge him next – ‘The Korean Zombie’ and Zabit Magomedsharipov.
“Well, there’s a few,” Volkanovski said. “We got like probably four guys that are like all in the same boat. They’re all probably one win away from being the number one contender. They’re all like just there, but they just need to have that fight and everybody is going to be screaming their name. Now that I got the win, let the division play out. Then hopefully by the end of the year they got that number one contender.
“But right now there’s a couple of frontrunners, maybe ‘Zombie’ and Zabit. I’d say they’re probably the frontrunners. If they get a win they’ll be clear ahead of the number one contenders and I look forward to taking them on.”
The Bigger Picture
Volkanovski sees two upcoming fights as crucial in determining his next challenger. ‘The Korean Zombie’ vs Brian Ortega, which still isn’t officially confirmed, and Zabit Magomedsharipov vs Yair Rodriguez set for August 29th.
Calvin Kattar is also in the mix, but Volkanovski believes he still needs one big win before he could be given a title shot.
Who would you like to see challenge Alex Volkanovski for the UFC featherweight title next, ‘The Korean Zombie’, Zabit Magomedsharipov, or somebody else?
See also: