A number of fighters have put their name in the hat to face Alexander Volkanovski next.
Max Holloway was scheduled to face Volkanovski in a trilogy fight for the featherweight title in the UFC 272 headliner taking place March 5 in Las Vegas.
However, Holloway would have to pull out soon after following an aggravation of an injury which forced him to withdraw from the fight.
That put a damper in the UFC’s plans for their main event. The good news, however, is there is still just under two months to go for UFC 272 which means an alternative could step in to fight Volkanovski.
And there is certainly no shortage of suitors.
Former double champion Henry Cejudo — who has been calling for a fight with Volkanovski ever since his retirement in 2020 — was quick to step up.
“Triple C to the rescue. @danawhite you have my number. 🏆🏆🏆🏆 #C4 #bendtheknee”
Triple C to the rescue. @danawhite you have my number. 🏆🏆🏆🏆 #C4 #bendtheknee https://t.co/Jkppjffm12 pic.twitter.com/CWkSzyNezf
— Henry Cejudo (@HenryCejudo) January 7, 2022
The streaking Josh Emmett was also waiting for a contract.
“Send me the contract!”
Send me the contract! @ Sacramento, California https://t.co/iT0PuvwdFn
— JOSH EMMETT (@JoshEmmettUFC) January 7, 2022
Alexander Volkanovski Targets Korean Zombie
The champion, however, will likely have a big say in who he wants to face and as far as he’s concerned, he’s interested in facing The Korean Zombie next.
“@KoreanZombieMMA Let’s do this!! #UFC272”
@KoreanZombieMMA Let’s do this!! #UFC272
— Alex Volkanovski (@alexvolkanovski) January 7, 2022
That wasn’t taken so well by some other featherweight contenders such as Giga Chikadze who could only laugh at Volkanovski’s tweet which promoted a response from the champion.
“All respect bro but your fighting for rank #5 next week….See you soon!!👊”
All respect bro but your fighting for rank #5 next week….See you soon!!👊
— Alex Volkanovski (@alexvolkanovski) January 8, 2022
Yair Rodriguez was much more aggressive, however.
“Do I really need to raise my hand @danawhite? Heal up quick champ @blessedmma. @alexvolkanovski I had respect for you before, but now, f*ck you! You little b*tch you know I’m next.”
Yair Rodriguez joins the party to tell "little b*tch" Alexander Volkanovski he deserves the shot at #UFC272 👀 pic.twitter.com/p6pxNaTTR5
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 8, 2022
Volkanovski retorted soon after:
“Maaaaaate calm down 😂 You have fought once in over 2 years and are coming off a loss. If zombie doesn’t happen you might get lucky.”
@panteraufc Maaaaaate calm down 😂
You have fought once in over 2 years and are coming off a loss. If zombie doesn’t happen you might get lucky.
— Alex Volkanovski (@alexvolkanovski) January 8, 2022
Unfortunately for all of them, it looks like Zombie will be the one who gets the fight for now.
“Chan Sung Jung is currently the frontrunner, by a margin, to replace Holloway versus Alex Volkanovski, per sources.”
Chan Sung Jung is currently the frontrunner, by a margin, to replace Holloway versus Alex Volkanovski, per sources.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 7, 2022
What do you think of that potential matchup?
