Charles Oliveira pulling out of UFC 294 last night shocked the whole MMA world. However, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski saved the day by agreeing to take the fight on short notice. Therefore, we will not get to witness Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski 2 on October 21.
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Makhachev and Oliveira prepared to compete in the rematch after the Russian dominated the Brazilian in the first fight. However, Oliveira reportedly suffered a nasty cut on his eyebrow and it would not heal in time for him to compete next weekend. Therefore, Makhachev will compete in another rematch, this time against Volkanovski. And the Russian has a message for the Australian ahead of their fight.
Islam Makhachev fires warning at Alexander Volkanovski for UFC 294
Makhachev and Volkanovski faced each other back in February at UFC 284 and delivered one of the fights of the year. The two went toe-to-toe for five rounds, with both fighters having their moments. Many expected Makhachev to dominate the fight. However, Volkanovski not only held his own, many argue he did enough to win the fight.
As a result, the Australian called for a rematch and said he hoped they would cross paths in the future. Thus, when the opportunity arose, he took it. And this has impressed Makhachev. The lightweight champion took to social media to give respect to his opponent.
Makhachev posted the fight banner on his Instagram account and captioned it with, “Respect for taking this fight on short notice Alex, but don’t use it as an excuse after the fight.” While this post shows the Russian’s respect for his opponent, it also reveals that he is confident he will win.
However, it won’t be so straightforward. Volkanovski was also in camp, preparing for a title defense against Illia Topuria. That was also going to be a tough test for Volkanovski and, therefore, you can be sure he was preparing well. Moreover, we have seen in the last fight that Makhachev’s grappling does not scare the Australian.
Thus, while both fighters are taking a massive risk, the only winners from this are the fans. We get to witness yet another fantastic fight between two modern-day greats.
What do you make of Islam Makhachev’s post for Alexander Volkanovski? Do you think he will overpower him again?
